Shattered Ties
by UltimateUnknown
Summary: Hinata and her seven year old son, Boruto live in a small village far away from the influence of ninjas. By moving to such a distant location, Hinata thought she could both outrun her past and live peacefully with her beloved son. However, all of those plans are thrown for a loop when Hinata and Boruto's lives are taken by a storm from the past. That storm's name - Naruto Uzumaki.
1. The Incoming Storm

**The Incoming Storm**

Hello and welcome to another one of my stories. As always, glad to have you here. I've had an idea for this story circulating around my brain for quite a while now but never got around to writing it. But I believe now is the time!

As with my other stories, this is AU. It doesn't follow canon or the established ninja world history. The relationship between Naruto and Hinata as well as the history of the ninja world is different in this story so as to fit the scenario I've got going here. In any case, I won't babble on any longer. I'll just let the first chapter speak for itself in introducing the story. Therefore, OFF WE GO!

* * *

Boruto Namikaze, a 7 year old boy was currently dashing through the bustling streets of the village at full speed. Classes had just ended and there was the weekend to look forward to. As such he energetically made his way through the shopping district until eventually he reached a small bakery amidst the plethora of stores. The sign above read "Himawari Bakery" complete with a sunflower design motif and an assortment of beautifully baked products on display below the front counter, the delicious aroma of which filled the air in the vicinity.

Rather than taking the backdoor Boruto jumped right over the counter and peaked through the door to the back of the store, announcing his presence to his mother. "Kaa-chan, I'm back."

Hinata, now 27 years of age looked over to her son and gave him one of her gentle smiles. "Welcome back! Can you take the counter for a bit? I'm almost done with this special order, so if there's a customer asking for a birthday cake, tell them I'm almost done."

"Sure, leave it to me." Boruto gave a quick reply before going over to deal with the stream customers currently outside.

Hinata ran the bakery by herself and given that she worked so hard to make ends meet for the two of them, Boruto helped out his mother after school or whenever he was free. It was a small business but with Hinata's baking prowess the place was quite popular amongst the villagers.

As Boruto finished serving a number of customers, a middle-aged woman who had ordered the birthday cake arrived at the store.

"Boruto-chan, helping out your mother as usual I see. You're quite the diligent son as always." She complimented the young boy. "Could you ask your mother if she's done with the birthday cake I ordered?"

"Sure, give me a second." Boruto answered before peeking through the back door once again. "Kaa-chan, the lady who ordered the cake is here."

"Yes, bringing it over right now." Hinata gently picked up the box which housed the cake and carried it over to the counter. "Here it is – the birthday cake as ordered."

The lady looked through the transparent top of the box and was amazed by the exquisitely decorated cake. It even had the name of her daughter embroidered on top as though it was a form of fancy calligraphy. It was clear that Hinata had put a great deal of effort behind this one cake.

"This looks absolutely beautiful. As always, you never disappoint Hinata-san. I'm sure my daughter will be ecstatic to see this." The woman said to Hinata as she handed over the payment.

Hinata graciously accepted. "It was my pleasure to be able to make your daughter's birthday cake. Please give her my greetings. I know how it feels to see your child grow up right in front of you so quickly."

"I will of course and once again thank you for the great work. I better head home quickly, my family's waiting. Take care of yourselves." The woman waved goodbye to the two at the shop and took her leave.

"Your cakes are so popular. Even my classmates are always telling me how they love them so much. It's a little embarrassing sometimes but it makes me happy too. I know better than anyone else how great they taste." Boruto praised his mother once they were by themselves.

"Is that so? Well I did make a little bit extra for you while baking that last cake. Want to have some?"

Boruto enthusiastically nodded at the offer. Although he got to try out his mother's baking a lot, he could never get enough of it. As he enjoyed some of the leftover cake, his mother cleaned up the rest of the shop.

"Since it's weekend tomorrow we can close up shop a little early today. That way the two of us can do something fun together. What do you say?" Hinata suggested to her son.

"Really? I'll help you clean up then!" Boruto was elated to hear of the idea. Even if it wasn't anything special, just being able to spend time playing with his mom made him happy. As such, with his help the two were able to close up the shop in no time and set off towards home.

This village they resided in was located at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. It was a relatively small place that was mostly outside the influence of ninjas, who were barely ever seen around this isolated region as it was quite far away from the ninja villages – the heart of the shinobi homelands. Hinata and Boruto lived in a small house just outside of the village, a fifteen minute walk by foot. This was mainly because the place was much cheaper to live in as compared to within the village and Hinata didn't mind it given their financially strenuous situation. Even though it wasn't the biggest or most extravagant of abodes, it was perfect for the small family of mother and son.

As they walked through the shopping district, Boruto's eyes fell upon a particular item in display through the glass windows of a store. It was a toy plane, rather big in size as well, complete with a remote control that would allow one to fly it around. The price tag on it however was equally as hefty.

Boruto had wanted such a remote controlled aircraft for quite a long time and as such looked at his mother with hopeful eyes. "Kaa-chan, can I have that?"

Hinata had seen him eyeing that particular toy for quite some time now and she wholeheartedly wanted to fulfil her son's wish, but given the price it was simply outside of her capability to buy it for him at this point in time. "I'm sorry son, but we're in a tight spot this month."

"But you said that last month as well." Boruto argued his case, feeling deflated.

"Boruto, you know our situation don't you? Given our house, bills and the cost of running the shop we're barely making by each month with what mama earns. We don't have a lot of money to be spending on frivolous expenses."

"You always say that. I wish for once you'd just give me something I want without making all these excuses." Boruto made one last comment on the matter before starting to walk off disappointed.

Her son's words pained Hinata because she was the type of mother who wanted to give her son the world if he so wished, but the reality of their situation made such a thing difficult. She worked incredibly hard by herself to make ends meet and indiscriminate spending was not a luxury they could afford.

Despite the small quibble, once the two exited the village Boruto returned to acting as cheerful as always. This was one of his good traits, the fact that he never remained hung up on any particular issue. As the two walked along the riverbank a little distance away from the village, Boruto talked to his mother about what he learned at school.

"Guess what our teacher taught us about in school today – SHINOBI!" From the tone of his voice, he seemed truly intrigued about the subject.

At first Hinata was a little perturbed by the topic but she quickly regained her composure. "Is that so? What exactly did they teach you?"

"We learned about the history of shinobi, about how a select few people in history were born with the special ability to manipulate the energy produced within their bodies, leading to their descendants becoming the shinobi as known today. They apparently have superhuman strengths and can even control fire, water, wind, earth and lightning with their powers. THAT'S SO COOL! I wish I could do that." Boruto explained excitedly before his expression took a slightly dejected turn. "But our teacher also said that even though they have all these powers, shinobi are bad people. That they are always fighting and innocent people are hurt because of it. But I don't know about that. If I had all these amazing powers I would use it to protect people, not hurt them."

"Your teacher is right Boruto. There is an old saying about how power corrupts people. The shinobi are a prime example of such. It is because they are so powerful that they are constantly at war with one another. There is no peace amongst them, only a cycle of hatred and revenge that never ends. And within that cycle, many innocent lives are destroyed due to their unbridled capabilities. Believe me son, I know power may seem enticing at first, but ultimately it can quite easily lead to one's downfall. You're better off being far away from the influence of the shinobi." Hinata explained to her son in detail, hoping he would understand even a little of her message.

However, Boruto seemed a bit unconvinced. Being a kid and not having ever been in contact with shinobi meant that he didn't quite understand the harshness of the reality surrounding them. Rather he was more engulfed in the power fantasy as were most kids his age.

This was all about to change though when Hinata suddenly sensed something within the forest. Boruto was surprised by his mother's sudden grasp as she pulled him along with herself behind a tree.

"Boruto, remain quite." He heard his mother whisper in a deadly serious tone unlike her usual self. But what caught him truly off guard was when he looked at his mother's face only to see the veins around her eyes bulged unlike he had ever seen before. He wondered what was going on but did not want to defy his mother's order right now given how she had a radically different aura about her than he was used to.

The forest floor was littered deep with fallen leaves at this time of the year and with one quick thrust of her palm Hinata sent the leaves flying up into the air. She quickly ducked on to the ground with her son and the falling leaves covered their bodies entirely, hiding them from sight. Boruto could barely look outside from under their cover but he could clearly see his mother's index finger firmly placed over her lips, indicating him to remain absolutely quiet. At this point Boruto could tell the severity of the situation given his mother's demeanour and resolved to follow her every command. Both a feeling of anxiety and fear overtook him unlike ever before. It was almost as though his senses were going beyond what he thought possible. Soon they could hear the footsteps and the chatter of a group of four people who all appeared to be masked.

"Search the area thoroughly. We've received intelligence that the missing nin from eight years ago was spotted around here." The leader of the group said to the rest.

"But that information was from some really ambiguous source. I'm not sure if it's even reliable." His teammate argued his case.

"I think so too." Another one sounded his agreement. "We've been searching this area for the whole day and haven't found anything yet. I doubt she's around here."

"Why are we even searching for someone who went missing eight years ago? I get that she's important and all but after all these years what exactly is the point? She's probably defected to some other ninja village by now given her abilities. Why would she be living in the middle of nowhere like here?" The final member of the group added his concerns.

"Look, just stop all of your whining! This is the hokage's order and we need to follow as required." The leader ordered once again. "But I agree that we've been looking here for quite a while. We should move on to the next area. I'll contact the second search party to keep an eye out for anything we may have missed while they pass through here. Let's move!"

To Boruto's absolute shock he saw the four people jump up to several tree branches and leapt from tree to tree, disappearing within moments. Hinata on the other hand could see that another group was on its way here and as such did not want to wait around. Taking this chance to escape, she embraced her son tightly with both hands and dashed towards the river while carrying him.

"Hold your breath for as long as you can!" She advised her son and within moments the two were underwater.

It was a good thing that his mother had given him swimming lessons, so Boruto was pretty good at remaining underwater for long lengths of time. After swimming one very long stretch, Hinata resurfaced on the other side of the river with her son. The two gasped for air as they climbed out of the water and Hinata's eyes also returned to normal at this point.

"W-What's going on Kaa-chan?" Boruto asked his mother as soon as they had a moment to breathe.

"I'm sorry for all those sudden actions Boruto. We shouldn't waste any more time here. Plus you need to get changed before you catch a cold. I'll explain later so let's head home for now."

Given his mother's urgent tone Boruto couldn't do anything but nod. Thus the two walked at a fast pace for a few minutes until eventually they reached their house within the woods. Little did they know however that a shadow clone was hiding in the woods near their house in anticipation of their return. It disappeared instantly with a poof of smoke as soon as it caught first sight of them and before they could see it. Even though Hinata thought she had avoided the prying eyes of the shinobi search party, unbeknownst to her, one particular ninja – one with whom she had an extensive history was now aware of her presence. Even though she thought she had outrun her past, that past had now caught up to her once more.

Deep within the forest as the memories of his clone flowed back into him, a blonde haired man opened his cerulean blue eyes with a smile on his face.

"So you were here all along…Hinata. After all these years, I've finally found you!" He said while standing up. "And that boy with you, he must be our…"

A feeling unlike any other flowed through him for the very first time after seeing Boruto, and he wasted no time in making his next move. The skies were getting cloudy and a storm was coming. That storm's name was "Naruto Uzumaki".

* * *

There you have it - the first chapter and the introduction of our main characters. It's a relatively simple take on the ninja world without any tailed beasts or the complicated history, but the focus will be on Boruto finding out about his lineage and Hinata having to face up to her ninja past. As for Naruto, well you'll see over time the events that transpired that led to all of this. You can probably already take a few guesses at what may have happened. However I should mention that the point of this story is not to portray Naruto as the evil one.

In any case I would love to know your thoughts on the first chapter and if you liked the setting. That is all for now :)


	2. The First Meeting

**The First Meeting**

Before we begin, I would like to say thanks to all of you who checked out this story. You guys came in and really blew it up. The initial reception to the first chapter was nothing short of amazing to me and it's always nice when a story idea is received well. So to show my thanks, today we have a pretty beefy chapter nearly double the size of the first one. I hope you enjoy.

* * *

Boruto quickly got into the house as Hinata shut the door behind them, allowing her to finally let out a sigh of relief.

The house was humble in size and walking in through the door led directly into a medium sized living room, decorated nicely with all the furniture one would expect and an open kitchen area to one side. The living room connected to a bathing area, a toilet and two small bedrooms for the two inhabitants. The house wasn't an extravagant abode, but despite that it was beautifully kept, something that could entirely be attributed to Hinata's organisation skills.

"You want to tell me what is going on now?" Boruto asked his mother once more in regards to the events that transpired earlier and the people they sneaked away from.

"Before any of that, you need to get in the bath. Then we'll talk."

"But-"

Hinata gave him one of her stern looks in response meaning that this matter was not up for negotiations. Even though she was naturally gentle and kind, after becoming a mother Hinata gained a somewhat stricter side to her in order to give her son a proper upbringing.

As such without any further questions asked Boruto got out of his wet clothes while his mother prepared a hot shower and a change of clothing for him. Once he was done, Hinata herself did the same and the two were now currently in the kitchen where Hinata was preparing dinner and Boruto sat on the countertop next to her, asking a bunch of questions.

"Come on, tell me what happened already. Who were those people?" Boruto continued from where he left off, his insatiable mind eager for more information.

Hinata understood at this point that she would have to provide some answers and exhaled a long breath before speaking. "You see Boruto, those people were shinobi."

Boruto's eyes instantly started gleaming in excitement. Although he had a hunch that was the case, to have confirmation that he had indeed seen real living breathing shinobi for the first time in his life was mind blowing.

"THAT'S SOOOO COOL!" He yelled in excitement, not able to hold it in. "The way those people just jumped from tree to tree so effortless was crazy. I wish I could have seen more of what they are capable of. Why did we have to hide from them? Maybe they would have showed us some of their powers if we asked!"

"Boruto!" Hinata now visibly frowned at her son. "Do you not remember what I told you earlier about the shinobi? They are dangerous individuals who have no hesitations in ending the lives of others to further their own means. You MUST be careful and stay away from them at all costs."

"But-"

"No buts!" Hinata cut him off. "Listen to what mama has to say."

Disappointed, Boruto simply replied "Fine".

"Well, I'm glad we're clear on that. Now then, dinner's ready, so go take a seat at the table." Hinata instructed as she carried over the food to the table in the living room. Before long dinner was served and the two were eating at the dining table where the conversation continued.

Even though he hesitated for a bit, Boruto asked his mother a taboo question. "Kaa-chan, where is Tou-chan?"

It wasn't the first time Boruto asked about his father, but the random nature of it caught Hinata completely off guard.

"W-Why the sudden question?" She asked back, but stuttered just like her childhood days.

"Tomorrow is father's day. So our teacher asked everyone in class to say one good thing about their dads."

Hinata instantly understood where this was going.

"All of my classmates explained what they loved about their fathers and recalled the best moments they had together. But when it came to me I couldn't say a single thing. Everyone looked at me funny, as though I was weird or something." Boruto explained his concerns before wanting some more answers from his mother. "I don't even know who my father is. Tell me Kaa-chan, what happened? Why is Tou-chan not with us?"

But there was no reply. His mother simply looked down at her plate and froze up, like a deer caught in headlights.

"The silent treatment as usual." Boruto was getting incredibly frustrated at this point. He wanted, no, NEEDED some answers. "Who exactly is my father? I'm sure you could at least tell me that much."

Hinata knew she needed to say something and that she was handling the situation very poorly, but once again she just couldn't bring herself to say anything at all.

At this point Boruto had reached his breaking point and had some very choice words for his mother. "Do you even know who my father is? MAYBE I'M AN UNWANTED CHILD WHO YOU GOT STUCK WITH AFTER ALL!"

There was a brief pause before Boruto felt a sharp sting on his face from his mother slapping him. But this action only served to anger him even more.

"I hate you! You're the worst mother there is!" Boruto responded in a venomous tone before throwing his chopsticks across the table and rushing off to his room for the night.

Hinata wanted to call out to her son but came to the realisation that she had done something truly reprehensible. Even though Boruto could be rash at times, he was much more sensitive when compared to other children. He was only seeking answers to questions he rightfully deserved to know. Yet not only did Hinata not provide him with any, but hit him on top, as though he was at fault for reaching the wrong conclusions.

But Boruto had no idea what his mother suffered through. The pains of her past were like old wounds that were only exacerbated by the incessant questioning, and his piercing words on top tore at Hinata's psyche. There was nothing she could do at this point other than lay her head on the table and wallow in her sorrows until eventually after a very long time sleep finally overtook her weary mind.

Hours passed before she woke up when the clock displayed it was 5 in the morning. Even though Hinata still felt broken inside, she wanted to see her son once more. As such she slowly opened the door to his room and made her way to his bedside with ninja-like silence. She knelt down next to the bed and observed Boruto's peaceful sleeping face with great intent. No matter the pain she went through, just looking at her son brought her great solace. Hinata couldn't help but ever so gently caress the side of his face that she had hit last night.

"I'm sorry Boruto. I truly am. Please find it in your heart to forgive mama for what she did." She apologised from the bottom of her heart in a whisper-quiet tone so as not to wake her son up. "But understand that you mean the world to me Boruto and everything I have done up until now was for your sake – to protect you, to keep you safe. And as your mother I will continue doing so, even if it means you'll come to despise me for it. No matter how painful it is, even if I'm torn apart in both body and mind, mama will always protect you. That was the promise I made when you were born and I will never go back on it at any cost."

Boruto continued sleeping peacefully but there was a small yet visible smile on his face as though he was having a good dream, something that calmed Hinata's heart ever so slightly.

"I know you may not want to forgive mama right now, but she'll keep doing her best for you. Mama has even found an extra job in the evening on weekends at a restaurant so that she can buy you all the toys you want." Hinata took a deep breath before she could bring herself to declare the next part, a fact that she had hidden from her son ever since he was born. "But I understand what you really want is to know about your father. So even though I couldn't tell this to you before, I can at least say it to you while you are asleep. Boruto, your father…he is a man named Naruto Uzumaki."

Even though Hinata knew that saying the name of his father while Boruto was asleep made no difference to him, it was an act that reduced the burden upon her soul ever so slightly. But before the memories of the past associated with that man overcame her, the sound of several knocks on the door brought Hinata to full alert. She rushed over to the door and looked through peephole, not finding anyone outside. Who could it have been this late at night? With that thought in mind she opened the door ever so carefully, keeping her guard up. Although there was no one outside, there was a letter left on the porch. She opened it up and began to read it:

 _Hinata-sama,_

 _After much searching we have finally been made aware of your whereabouts. We wish to have a conversation with you. Please follow the path as shown in the map attached. We are waiting._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Well-wishers from Konoha._

Hinata's heart instantly sunk after reading the message. She didn't know how it was possible but somehow the shinobi from Konoha had found out where she lived. This spelled absolute disaster. She didn't know what to do. Everything she had done to avoid her past; everything she had built over the past eight years had just come crashing down. Although the situation seemed hopeless, she decided to at least have the conversation and find out what exactly they wanted. As such she quickly changed into her old ninja attire and rushed out of the house.

Hinata activated her Byakugan and jumped from tree to tree through the forest at breakneck pace until she finally reached her destination – a small clearing within the woods where the four masked ninjas from earlier were sitting by a campfire. They all got up once they saw Hinata arrive at the scene and the one in charge stepped forward.

"What is it that you want?" Hinata asked while glaring daggers at the Konoha shinobi with her Byakugan. She remained on edge as well, ready to take action at moment's notice.

"Please, calm down Hinata-sama. We do not mean any hostility towards you. We come to you in peace with a message on behalf of the hokage." The man replied in a very calm tone and raised both of his hands to indicate truce. "So please, you may relax. There is no need for you to exert your eyes. As I said, we simply wish to talk for now and nothing more. It is the hokage's order."

Hinata investigated them all very closely before deactivating her eyes, but remained cautious nonetheless. "So, what is it you want to say? Make it quick."

"Firstly Hinata-sama, the title of the hokage has changed hands since you left. The new hokage is the one who has sent us in order to suggest to you to return."

Before he could continue, Hinata cut him right off. "Tell the hokage that I have no intentions of ever returning. End of conversation."

"Please Hinata-sama, listen to the entire proposition." The shinobi requested earnestly. "Your name has been in the wanted book as a rogue ninja ever since you defected from the hidden leaf village. However, the current hokage is willing to erase your name as a rogue ninja and pardon your defection on your return. He'll arrange a new place for your stay within the village as well, one that is of your choosing. He is even willing to negotiate personally with the Hyuga clan to accept you back amongst them even though the Hyuga were highly upset with your past choices. You will not be reprimanded in any way for your previous actions. So please, re-consider."

"I don't think you quite caught what I said a few seconds ago, so I'll repeat them once more. I have NO intentions of ever returning to Konoha." Hinata repeated her previous statement, this time in a much more hardened tone.

"A shinobi of your caliber is invaluable to Konoha. You were once known to be one of the best, bar none. A loss of this magnitude is unprecedented for the village. However, most importantly, the reason the hokage is so adamant about this matter is for your own safety. We have recently received intelligence that the raikage has been attempting to locate your whereabouts as well in an attempt to capture and steal your Byakugan. Unfortunately since you are not part of Konoha and are currently a rogue ninja, we're able to do little to protect you or stop the raikage's actions. As such the hokage is worried for your wellbeing and is only trying to look out for you."

"Tell the hokage that I can take care of myself. I have no need for his concerns. Why does he even care for someone who has been gone for nearly 8 years anyway?" Hinata asked back aggressively.

This time one of the other three finally spoke up. "Of course he cares. You're his-"

Before he could finish though, the leader raised his right hand to make him stop before once again focusing on Hinata. "Please, re-consider returning. It is the hokage's earnest request."

At this point another one of the shinobi, one who had a communication earpiece expressed a cause for concern to the leader. "Boss, I've been trying to get in touch with the other team for a while now and they haven't been responding. I think there might be trouble."

The leader turned to him with a concerned look. "Weren't they hot on the trails of the culprit? When was the last time you talked with them?"

"It was half an hour ago…"

"This is bad." The leader now had a look of serious worry in his face.

"What's going on?" Hinata asked since she did not like how this was headed.

"To cut a long story short, two groups were sent here to undertake two missions. Our group's primary task was to look for the missing nin who was spotted in this area. The second group was going after a messenger who is thought to be delivering a secret communication between someone from Konoha and the raikage. Although these are separate missions, since we're in the same area we've been assigned to provide backup for one another as necessary. We've been trying to communicate with the other group, but as of now they haven't been responding at all."

At that moment a distress call arrived from the other group, which was put on speaker so that everyone could hear it. "They have…reinforcements. Lots of them. And…they're going after you. Be careful!"

As the message cut off Hinata instantly activated her Byakugan only to find that they were surrounded from all directions by Kumo shinobi hiding in the woods.

"WATCH OUT!" She shouted to the other four while dashing backwards to avoid the incoming attack. Although she was able to barely move out of the way, the same couldn't be said for the other four.

In what could only be described as a few split seconds, the ground itself started to glow before an intense electrical storm surged upwards and engulfed everyone in its large area of effect. The collaboration attack performed by nearly a dozen Kumo shinobi had such devastating lightning based power that it immediately knocked out everyone caught by it.

Even though Hinata's pre-emptive back dash had allowed her to barely get out of the attack's area of effect, a small burst of lightning haphazardly tore out of the technique and struck her left foot while she was in mid-air. At the same time Hinata saw a person rushing towards her from behind and just as she dropped to the ground in order to avoid him her damaged leg caused her to lose balance, leading to the man slashing her vertically across the back with a lightning imbued sword, throwing her face first on to the ground. Hinata's back burned with pain from the sword strike as blood gushed out of the wound, and within moments she found herself trapped inside a dome of intense lightning that prevented her from escaping. As she lay helplessly on the ground, more and more Kumogakure shinobi started to make their way out of the woods until all ten of them were in plain sight. Hinata was injured as well as outnumbered, and the situation did not look good.

"Today must be our lucky day. Not only did we ambush the Konoha shinobi successfully, we've also stumbled upon the rumoured rogue ninja with the Byakugan. Raikage-sama will be very pleased with this catch. We should be getting a pretty fat bonus on our next pay checks as well." The leader of the group, the one who slashed Hinata earlier, informed his group before looking back at Hinata with an evil grin. "But who would have thought that the rogue ninja would be such defenceless prey? Take my advice – be good and follow along with us nicely. I wouldn't want to damage the valuable goods any more than necessary. Considering the bounty he put on your head, I'm sure the raikage has some great plans for you."

As the Kumo ninja sneered and jeered at what they thought of as an easy catch of some defenceless prey, Hinata braced herself for a counterattack after years of not having come into any confrontations with other ninja. Little did these people know, the predators were just about to become prey.

"I cannot afford to get captured by the likes of you. There is someone waiting for me who I must return to. So you leave me no choice but to use these powers once more." Hinata got up on all four limbs just like a beast would, while a thick blue aura shrouded her whole body and morphed into the shape of a large menacing lion, one that looked ready to launch an assault at any second. "Gentle Step: Lion's Metamorphosis!"

In her newly transformed state Hinata dashed through the dome of lightning surrounding her as though it didn't even exist, and at a blistering speed closed the distance between her and her previous attacker.

"LION'S FIST!" Hinata shouted and before her target could see or even react she punched him with an unbridled amount of force, sending him crashing through at least ten trees and knocking him out for at least a couple of days.

There was shock all across the battlefield as the fact sunk in amongst the rest of the shinobi that their leader, the strongest amongst them was eradicated effortlessly by this person in a matter of seconds. As Hinata turned towards the rest of them in her intimidating new beastly form and gave a deafening roar, the rest of the ninjas started to legitimately shake in their boots understanding full well that she could massacre them all at any given time, even when they outnumbered her. It was one of those fight or flight responses and every single one of them as soon they were able to regain control of their bodies turned tail and ran for their lives. Hinata could have chased after them, but she didn't see a reason to. Once all of the enemies disappeared from her Byakugan's extended field of view, she dispelled her transformation and once again stood up on two legs as normal.

"It seems I still haven't quite lost my touch after all these years. But to think I had to use that technique against them…" Hinata felt a sharp pain across her back and her leg once more, but remained strong nonetheless. She had noticed the man she had taken out earlier drop a scroll during the scuffle and now limped over to him in order to pick it up. There was a seal on it but considering a certain person Hinata had known for the longest time who was quite adept at sealing techniques, she effortlessly broke the seal on the scroll and started to read it.

The title of the message instantly started to ring alarm bells within her mind, which read: "Assassination of the recently inaugurated hokage". Once she got over the ominous heading and kept reading, it only got worse. The message seemed to be from an unnamed group of individuals from within Konoha who appeared to be unhappy with the selection of the current hokage. As such they were planning an assassination attempt in order to usurp his position and currently sought an alliance with the raikage, who had always remained a long standing enemy of Konoha. It was all highly politically motivated and spelled nothing but trouble.

"Just when my life had settled into something peaceful, how did I manage to get myself involved in his mess?" Hinata sighed in defeat as she closed the message and re-sealed it, given the highly sensitive nature of the material inside. She shook her head strongly to reject her own thoughts. "This has nothing to do with me anymore. I am no longer a Konoha shinobi and what happens there is none of my concern. All I care about is my son right now."

She limped over to the rest of the Konoha ninja and checked to find out that they were only knocked unconscious from the powerful electric shock earlier and should be waking up soon. As such she placed the scroll inside the leader's jacket and took her leave.

Back at home the clock just hit 6 in the morning and Boruto had just woken up from his sleep. He remembered last night's incident and even though he was very upset with his mother then, he felt a bit remorseful now on hindsight for the terrible things he said to her. After all, his mother always showered him with love and looked after him all by herself. She was not someone who would keep secrets from him without very good reason, and she always appeared to be in great pain every time he mentioned the topic of his father. Boruto felt bad that he intentionally brought his mother pain and then proceeded to say some very mean spirited things to her when all she ever did was cherish him. As such he went to the bathroom to refresh himself and resolved to apologise and make up with his mother right after.

He tiptoed to his mother's room and opened the door, only to not find her there to his surprise. He then went over to the living room and looked around but once again there was no sign of her. At this point Boruto was a bit confused. Where could his mother have gone this early in the morning?

Almost as though to answer that thought, the front door to their house burst open and Hinata limped in, blood dripping on to the floor from her back.

"KAA-CHAN?!" Boruto exclaimed in shock after seeing the injured state of his mother. "W-W-What happened to you?"

Hinata barely managed to drag her body over to the sofa and collapsed. It didn't take long for the sofa to become stained in blood either. Boruto rushed over to his mother and was left speechless by the large slash wound on her back. He had never before seen this much blood in his life.

Hinata lifted her hand and caressed Boruto's cheek with a smile. "I'm sorry my dear son for what I did last night. I truly am. It would appear that I probably won't be able to go to that new work tonight either. So I won't be able to buy you that toy you wanted anytime soon. Please forgive…mama."

With those last words Hinata's consciousness faded away and her hand dropped to the side of the sofa. Boruto was still in shock from what he was seeing, but his mother's current senseless state brought him out of his trance and instead filled him with true fear for the very first time. Fear that his mother may not be waking up.

"Kaa-chan? Kaa-chan? Kaa-chan? Kaa-chan?" Boruto kept calling out to her as he shook her limp body. But there was no response.

"KAAAAAA-CHAAAAAN!" Even though he screamed at the top of his lungs, there was still no response.

Nothing like this had ever happened before. If he ever called out to her, his mother would always respond back to him. She would always be there for him whenever he needed her. But now she was no longer answering to him and the feeling of seeing his mother's wounded body covered in blood paralyzed him with fear. He didn't know what to do anymore.

"Wake up. Wake up…please. Are you angry with me for what I said last night? I'm sorry for that. I'll apologise as many times as you like. I'll do anything you tell me to as punishment. I'll never say such mean things again. So please, wake up." Boruto pleaded desperately to his mother. "I don't need any of those stupid toys. I won't ask you about my father either. I don't need anything else. All I need is you."

As his mother still didn't answer back after all his pleas, Boruto finally lost his composure and burst out into tears. He embraced his mother's head as tightly as he could and admitted his worst fears. "Mama, please…don't go. You're the only one I have. You can't leave me all alone. I need you…I love you."

At that moment of hopelessness and desperation, Boruto heard someone burst through the door behind him. He turned around only to find a man with blonde hair and blue eyes standing there, very similar to him. Instantly Boruto knew that this man was his last beacon of hope and clung on to the lower half of his body.

"Please save my mother. Please save her. I'm begging you, please save her. Save her. Save my mother. I'll do anything…please save her." He repeated almost like a broken record.

The blonde haired man understood that the boy's mind had been overcome with absolute fear, so much so that his brain could no longer formulate any thoughts other than saving his mother. As such he knelt down and embraced Boruto tightly in order to grant him peace of mind.

"It's okay. You're not alone. I'm here now, and I'll take care of everything." He whispered into the child's ears, his pacifying words bringing the young boy back to reality once again.

Boruto felt a sense of alleviation and comfort from hearing this man's voice that he just couldn't describe. Somehow he knew inside that he could trust this person.

Little did Boruto know however that for the very first time in his life he was being embraced by his father.

Thus, it was the first meeting between father and son…Naruto and Boruto.

* * *

Next time should be interesting. Did you guess who the current hokage is? He wasn't outright named but hopefully it was pretty obvious. If not, it'll become clear soon enough and should make for a fun scenario.

From last chapter **gummy b3ars, m3i T3rumi, Blackcurse11, LexiLevine88, anne** and the majority of you had one question in mind - why did Hinata leave? All I can say is that question will be answered over time. It is pretty central to the plot after all.

 **Guest 8:** I would not worry about this or any of my stories ending in tragedy. I'm too sappy of a person to write tragedies. I love my happy endings. That being said I do like to create drama and tension in stories from time to time.

In any case, that is all I have for today. I would as always love to hear what you thought of the chapter and I hope to see you all in the next one.


	3. The Ties of Blood

**The Ties of Blood**

You guys asked me to provide an update as soon as I could, and I'm happy to oblige. So without further ado, the next addition to the story.

* * *

Naruto embraced Boruto tightly for a while until he was sure that the boy had once again regained his composure and was no longer in shock. For him though it was the first time he had ever come close to his own son, let alone meet him. It was a feeling unlike any other to be holding on to his child, his own blood. Naruto almost didn't want to let go, but he had to overcome the emotional reunion in order to tend to Hinata. Once there was a little distance between father and son, Naruto could clearly see the resemblance Boruto had with him. The blue eyes, the blonde hair – he was almost like a miniature version of Naruto himself. The similarities were rather shocking to Naruto now that his son was right in front of him.

"Are you feeling a little better now?" Naruto asked his son with genuine concern in his tone. "I came rushing in when I heard your scream. But as I said, you're not alone in this. I'll help you take care of your mother as best I can."

Boruto couldn't help but feel relieved and nodded in response. Naruto walked over to the sofa where Hinata was currently passed out and knelt down beside her. The sight of the rather large slash wound on her back instantly caught his eyes and he felt guilty inside. But he knew there was no time to waste on sentimentalities right now and picked up Hinata's hand to check her pulse. He knew Hinata was tough but had to make sure nonetheless.

Naruto then breathed a sigh of relief and looked over to Boruto with a smile. "Your mother is fine. It seems she lost quite a bit of blood and passed out, but the cut itself is not too deep and shouldn't require any stitches. If we just tend to that wound of hers and patch it up she should be all good again."

"Really?" Boruto asked while looking at his father with hopeful eyes although not knowing his relation to him.

"Of course, so let's get to work. Firstly we need to clean up the wound. I need some hot water and a clean towel. Can you show me to the bathroom?"

Boruto guided his father to their bathroom, handing him a freshly washed towel in the process.

"This will be perfect." Naruto replied as he got into the bathing area and started to fill up a bucket with hot water. "Also, do you have a first aid kit at home? We'll need some bandages and ointment."

"Yeah, I'm gonna go grab that." Boruto wasted no time and ran off to another room to get the items he was asked for.

Naruto on the other hand carried over the water and towel to Hinata's side and cut open the back of her clothes with a kunai in order to be able access her wound more easily. He dipped the towel in the warm water and used to clean up all the blood around the damaged area. Given the enhanced regenerative capabilities of a ninja when compared to a normal person, Hinata's bleeding had almost stopped at this point. Even if Naruto wasn't here, she would have eventually woken up by herself. Within a minute, Boruto got back and handed Naruto a box with all sorts of medicinal items that his mother used at times of need.

"Let's see what we have here…" Naruto rummaged through the box to see if he could find something of use, but unfortunately the items he was looking for weren't exactly there. "Hmmm…a couple of band aids aren't going to be enough for this. We need proper padding and bandages to patch up the wound. Plus some painkillers will be useful for relief once she regains consciousness. Not to mention, a crutch will be necessary for your mother to walk around for the next week or so given the injury to her leg, even though it's nothing major."

Boruto listened attentively to the man and was mesmerised by how knowledgeable he sounded. "How do you know all this stuff?"

"Well, I'm a ninja after all and every ninja knows at least some basic level of first aid. This is nothing." Naruto replied casually, but the reaction he got from the boy caught him by surprise.

Boruto's eyes had practically lit up like light bulbs and he looked at Naruto as though he was some kind of mythical creature from a children's story book.

"You're a ninja? An honest to goodness ninja?!" The boy questioned in a tone of utter disbelief.

"Y-Yeah…is that really so surprising? Don't tell me you've never met a ninja before."

"I haven't. Ninjas almost never come around these areas and the people here have a strong dislike towards them. Even mama always says that I shouldn't ever get involved with ninjas, but I've always been curious about them. And now I'm talking to one in person. This is crazy!"

Naruto was surprised at first at the fact that Boruto had no idea of his own ninja heritage, but quickly came to the realisation that it was all Hinata's doing. She wanted Boruto to not ever be involved with the shinobi given her own history and as such did not tell him the truth about his lineage.

" _If only you knew, you've been living with a ninja your whole life."_ Naruto thought while looking over from Hinata to Boruto, deciding to play along. "Well, whatever you've heard about the shinobi is not necessarily true and we're not all bad people. Sure we have some amazing powers, but the way in which we choose to use them makes us who we are, good or bad. And right now I'm going to do my best to help your mother. But I can't do it alone. Normally I'd go out and grab all the necessary medicinal items myself, but I just arrived in this area yesterday and have no idea where anything is. So I need your help. Would you be able to show me the nearest pharmacy in the village?"

"OF COURSE!" Boruto replied resoundingly at first but a problem popped up within his mind. "I can show you the place, but we can't just leave mama by herself like this."

"That's an easy solution." In a burst of smoke and to Boruto's disbelief, a second Naruto appeared out of thin air right next to the original. "I'll stay here and take care of your mother while you go with my clone and grab all the medicine required. Sound good?"

"T-T-T-T-That's y-y-you. And t-t-t-then that's a-a-a-another you. There're t-t-t-t-two yous." Boruto looked from one Naruto to the other and his mind was blown away. He couldn't believe his own eyes. How could this ever be possible?

Naruto on the other hand chuckled after seeing Boruto's reaction. "Being able to create one's clone is a pretty common technique. But I suppose for someone who has never been in contact with ninjas it is pretty shocking. If you want I can show you more of how clones work later but for now we need to make haste for your mother."

Boruto agreed and gave the original Naruto a very stern look, one that reminded Naruto of the Hyuga's signature glare even though the boy had never even heard of the clan. "I'm entrusting you with my mother until I get back. Don't let anything bad happen to her, or I'll never forgive you!"

Although he was just 7 years of age, the intensity in Boruto's eyes was fierce. Naruto was initially a bit taken aback by the look that only appeared within the eyes of the most hardened shinobi, but he was also proud at the boy's resolve, because this boy was his son after all. Thus he nodded emphatically and replied, "You can leave it to me."

With that both Boruto and the clone exited the house and were on their way towards the village.

"If you don't mind, rather than walking I think it's better if we do this." The Naruto clone grabbed Boruto to his surprise and placed him on top of his shoulder. "Now hold on tight, because we're going to go on a bumpy ride."

Boruto barely had time to grab on to Naruto's head before the two of them were jumping from tree branch to tree branch at a rapid pace, leaving Boruto in awe. The feeling of the wind soaring past his face and the speed at which they were travelling was simply incredible and fun beyond words.

"This is amazing!" Boruto said to Naruto while doing his best to hold on tight. "I've never travelled this fast in my life."

"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself, but we'll be reaching the village pretty soon."

The fact that they were reaching the village reminded Boruto of an important fact that he needed to mention to Naruto. "You need to make sure to not let your powers be seen by the villagers. As I mentioned before, they don't take kindly to ninjas here."

"Thanks for the heads up, but it'll be fine. I'll stop when we get there. Also, since we're on the topic, could you perhaps keep my identity as a ninja a secret between the two of us? I wouldn't want to get in trouble with the villagers and I'm sure you wouldn't want to get in trouble with your mother. It's mutually beneficial."

"Sure, that's sounds good to me."

"Sweet!" Naruto replied happily. "By the way, we never really did introduce each other. What's your name?"

"Boruto. Boruto Namikaze."

There was a small smile that crept up across Naruto's face once he heard his son's name. It would appear Hinata hadn't quite abandoned the identity of the boy's father after all.

"You haven't told me your name yet." Boruto snapped Naruto out of his thought process with his reminder.

"Ahh yes sorry about that." Naruto said before returning back to thinking and deciding on how he would introduce himself. "My name is…uh…Menma. Menma Arashi."

"What the frig kind of crazy name is that?" Boruto questioned out of genuine confusion.

"Hey, that's rude. I put some thoug-…I mean my parents put some thought into that name." Naruto appeared a little upset at first but soon returned to his upbeat self and raised his fist up to the boy. "Well in any case, it's nice to meet you Boruto. Let's work together in getting your mother well."

"Yeah, let's do that!" Boruto added while reciprocating the fist bump. Outside his knowledge, he had teamed up with his father for the very first time.

 **Back at home…**

The real Naruto used the towel and the hot water to clean up Hinata's wounds. However, it hurt him greatly inside every time he looked at the unconscious Hinata and the damage she had sustained.

"I'm sorry Hinata. I truly am." He apologised wholeheartedly. "I find you after eight long years and the first thing that results from the reunion is this injury. Truly I did not intend for this to happen. Yes I informed the Konoha shinobi of your location and asked them to talk to you, but I did not anticipate the attack of the Kumo ninja. I'm sorry that I failed you once again."

The distressed look on Naruto's face showed clearly how much pain he was in. But he took a deep breath and continued to convey his thoughts while tending to Hinata. "The very first time I saw you along with our child yesterday, I had this feeling of joy that I just couldn't describe. When I embraced our son for the very first time, it was one of the happiest moments of my life. But I know I have no right to claim anything in regards to our child anymore. You sacrificed everything for him – your clan, your home, your village, your identity and even your family, me. That's how much he meant to you. You were willing to do anything and everything for him. At the time when you left, you did so despising the ninja system. And after all these years even though I've finally achieved my childhood dream, I feel hollow inside. Ever since I lost you I've felt nothing but regret. Being apart from you made me realise that dreams mean nothing if the people you most care about are not there to share them with you. If only I had listened to you back then, the three of us could have been together right now and I would have been happier for it."

Despite his pain, Naruto now hardened himself and spoke of his ambitions. "But I haven't given up. I know I can rectify matters. I believe you'll return to me once more because the two of us shared a special bond, and our child is proof of that. Even though you may not want me around him right now, he is still my son and I'll fulfil my role as his father properly for all the years I've missed out. I'm sorry Hinata but I'm going to be involving myself with the two of you from here on out. I hope you'll find it in your heart to forgive me for both the past and the present so that together we may build a better future."

As Naruto finished cleaning up Hinata's wound, Boruto and his clone returned home.

"I'M BACK!" Boruto shouted as he ran to his mother's side with the medical supplies. "How's mama doing?"

The clone walked in after Boruto and dropped the rest of the items they bought at the small table next to the sofa before disappearing.

As the memories of his clone flowed back into him, Naruto felt happy after learning of his son's name for the first time. "Boruto…so that's your name. It's great."

Boruto on the other hand was shocked to hear his father speak his name. "How did you know my name? I don't remember telling you."

"That's because when my clone is dispelled I gain all of its memories."

"Wow, that's insane. You ninjas really have some crazy powers."

"From the perspective of someone who's not a ninja, I suppose that's true." Naruto agreed. "In any case, your mother's injury is okay so far. All we need to do now is apply some medicine and bandage her up so that she can set off in the path of full recovery."

"I'm glad she's coming along nicely." Boruto was relieved to hear of his mother's wellbeing. "Is there anything I can help with?"

Naruto thought for a second and came with a suggestion to involve his son in the process of helping his mother. "Yes, could you cut out the bandages at equal length and pass them to me?"

"SURE!" Boruto replied and got to work diligently.

Naruto applied the ointment for the cut on to some clinical padding and used them to cover up Hinata's wound. He then used the bandages that Boruto cut out to wrap Hinata's body up from right below her chest all the way down to her lower abdomen, keeping the soft padding firmly in place. He then moved on to her injured leg and repeated the process, although it wasn't in nearly as bad a shape. Once he was done Naruto looked at his handiwork carefully one last time to ensure everything was well in place and wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"All done! She should be as good as new before long." Naruto informed his son with an infectious smile and raised his hand towards him. "I couldn't have done it without you."

Boruto had been watching Naruto's work with great intent all this time and could tell how much care he put into making sure his mother was patched up well. Thus he happily reciprocated the high five with a smile that was almost identical to Naruto's.

"Despite what everyone said, I guess ninjas really are amazing after all." Boruto was joyous knowing that the first ninja he ever met was such a great person. "Thank you for helping out my mother."

"Don't mention it. We should also get your mother out of those bloody clothes to finish off. Could you bring a nice change of clothes for her?" Naruto requested.

Boruto instantly rushed off to his mother's room and was back with a nice pair of cotton shirt and pajamas for his mother. "These are some of her favorites."

"Those will do." Naruto replied and flipped Hinata on to her back gently in order to change her clothes. But just as he was about to open up the torn up jacket she was currently wearing, Boruto forcefully shut his eyes with both hands from behind. "What're doing? I can't see a thing."

"You were about to take Kaa-chan's clothes off. Of course I can't let you see a thing!" Boruto asserted in an aggressive tone.

"How the heck am I supposed to change her clothes if you're shutting my eyes closed?" Naruto retorted in an irritated tone this time.

"I don't know. You're a ninja, just make it happen somehow." Boruto insisted.

"I might be a ninja but I'm not a miracle worker. I need my eyes to see, so let go off them!" Naruto demanded in return.

In just a few moments the atmosphere between the two changed from friendly to hostile and the two ended up in a scuffle where Naruto was trying to get Boruto off his back while Boruto was trying to stay latched on to Naruto's face. Suddenly, during their intense struggling and flailing, Naruto's hands landed onto two incredibly soft objects, the blissful sensation of which he simply could not describe with words. Instantly a sense of dejavu overtook him and he decided to give them a squeeze for old time's sake.

"WHY YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU?!" Boruto screamed at the top of his lungs and yanked Naruto backwards with inhumane strength and threw him on to the ground.

Naruto was amazed by the strength this boy displayed, but decided to act clueless. "W-What happened?"

"Don't try to act dumb. You grabbed my mother's chest, you lecherous old man!"

" _I've done way more than just grab your mom's melons for you to be around, you ignorant child. But I can't say that of course."_ Naruto thought within his mind.

"Who the heck are you calling an old man, you little mama's boy?" Naruto asked out of annoyance. "I'm only 27 years old, probably the same age as your mother."

"I'm NOT a mama's boy. Also, I'm 7 and you're 27. To me you ARE an old man." Boruto retorted. "But that still doesn't change the fact that you're a pervert!"

"I don't want to hear that from a kid who clearly has some kind of a mother complex."

"I DON'T have a mother complex, YOU ERO-JIJI!" Boruto yelled at the top of his lungs.

At first Naruto's jaws dropped hearing Boruto refer to him as a perverted old man, but once the irony of the situation caught up to him, he burst out laughing.

"W-What's the matter? Why are you laughing all of a sudden?" Boruto was confused by the sudden turn of events.

"Sorry about that. You reminded me so much of how I used to be as a kid myself. That blatant disrespect – I guess there are some things not even your mama could fix." Naruto said while ruffling Boruto's hair. _"I wonder if it's genetic."_

Boruto knocked Naruto's hand off and gave him a disapproving gaze. "What are you talking about?"

"It's nothing. I'm sorry about what I did earlier. It really wasn't intentional, and I wouldn't want to lose my new friend over a misunderstanding. So could you please forgive me?" Naruto apologised as sincerely as he could.

Even though Boruto was angry at first, he couldn't deny how much of a help Naruto had been to him. Not mention, he never had a father figure in his life before. He had never argued with anyone like this before, but admittedly the playful bickering was kind of fun.

Thus he decided to forgive Naruto. "Fine, just this once. But if anything like that happens again, you'll pay the price."

"Aye Aye Sir!" Naruto replied while giving the boy a military-like salute.

This time Boruto couldn't help but start laughing at the silly antics.

"I take it you haven't had anything to eat for breakfast." Naruto asked the boy as he nodded in response. "In that case I should probably make something for you and for when your mother wakes up. I'm sure she won't feel like cooking when she regains consciousness."

"You can cook?" Boruto questioned rather curiously.

"Of course. I mean come on. I'm a grown man after all. The least I can do is cook some food." Naruto answered as she rummaged through the kitchen storage for a pan and placed it on the stove. "Would you be interested in some chicken flavoured soup?"

"I love soup! Kaa-chan makes it all the time." Boruto seemed genuinely ecstatic at the proposition.

"Well then soup it is. I'm sure it'll be good for your mother as well when she wakes up. It's the perfect food when you're under the weather."

Boruto sat on the countertop next to Naruto and watched him make the soup. He had quite a bit of a different style of cooking when compared to his mother. Even though he wasn't as organised or meticulous like Hinata, the delicious aroma that filled the air proved that the flavours were all there.

"Is there anything you can't do as a ninja?" Boruto asked out of pure amazement at everything Naruto had done so far.

But Naruto shrugged the compliment off nonchalantly. "That's not true at all. I'm pretty bad at many things. I couldn't cook until much later in my adulthood. I pretty much used to live on ramen for the better part of my life."

"Then how did you learn?"

"My wife used to do all the cooking at home. She chided me for eating nothing but ramen all the time and did her best to make some really delicious food that would make me have a more balanced diet. She was a genius at cooking and whatever little I know came from her."

"From the way you say it, does she not cook for you anymore?"

Naruto gazed down at the ground with a look of sadness evident on his face. "She's not with me anymore."

Boruto was surprised to hear that and felt bad for asking. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad."

Naruto looked over to Boruto with one of his signature smiles and patted him on the head. "You're awfully sensitive for a child. Maybe something you got from your mother? In any case the food's ready, so let's have some breakfast. I don't know about you but I'm starving."

Boruto nodded wholeheartedly as Naruto took the food to the dining table and prepared two servings for them both.

From just one sip of the soup, the familiar delicious flavours hit Boruto with a feeling of dejavu. "This tastes just like my Kaa-chan's."

"Is that so? I take it that means it's good?" Naruto acted surprised even though Hinata was the one who taught him how to make this particular soup many years ago just to make sure he could make something by himself in case she was ever absent for whatever reason.

"Good? No, this is great!" Boruto barely managed to answer back as he slurped on some more soup.

"I'm glad you like it." Naruto couldn't help but feel a sense of happiness cooking for his son for the very first time in his life and him being appreciative of it. However, his thoughts were suddenly disrupted when he heard the boy say the words "Thank you".

"Thank you for helping my mother. Thank you for everything you've done." Boruto said with all the sincerity and gratitude he could muster up. "If there's any way I could repay you please let me know."

Naruto was surprised at first at the boy's heartfelt confession, but only grinned happily afterwards. There was certainly a part of Hinata ingrained within the child. "You don't need to thank me for anything Boruto. I'm glad I could help. That being there is one thing I would appreciate your help with if you'd indulge."

Boruto was instantly on edge. "Anything! Just tell me and I'll do my best!"

"You see, I'm new to this area and I don't know my way around anywhere. Since you seem to know the village like the back of your hand, would you be willing to give me a tour?"

"OF COURSE!" Boruto asserted with force. "Anytime."

"That's brilliant. In that case, I've started living in the mansion located in the hill on the other side of the village. Maybe if you're free tomorrow morning and your mother is better, you could give me some time. I'll be there in the weekends from now on, so any day is fine really. If you're at the village, I can find you."

"Sure, I'll see if I can show you around tomorrow." Boruto looked truly excited at the prospect of not just helping Naruto, but also spending more time with him.

"Well, I need to be leaving now. I have work that needs to be done." Naruto explained to the boy as they finished up their breakfast and he washed the dishes.

"Oh oh, are you going on a mission? Like infiltrating the enemy base? Or maybe espionage?" Boruto was blown away as his mind pondered the possibilities.

"Unfortunately, my work no longer requires me to actually do any missions. It's just me sitting at a desk doing paperworks."

"What? No way. That's just boring." Boruto was subsequently overtaken by disappointment.

"Well, that's just how the cookie crumbles." Naruto said as he got down on his knees and patted his son's head gently. "I'm glad we were able to meet Boruto. You're a good boy and I want you to keep taking care of your mother. I hope we can spend more time together in the future."

Boruto nodded excitedly as he saw Naruto off to the door. "Show me some cool ninja arts next time okay?"

"Sure thing. I'll see you later. Bye-bye." Naruto waved to the boy and in just a second disappeared through the woods.

Boruto felt a sense of connection with Naruto that he never quite felt with any other person. With a sense of happiness inside him, he sat next to his mother and waited for her to wake up.

 **Two hours later…**

Hinata opened her eyes ever so slowly and the first thing she saw was her son's face right over her head. Instantly there was a huge smile on his face.

"MAMA!" Boruto shouted in joy and engulfed his mother in the tightest of hugs he had ever given her.

"Ouch ouch ouch! Boruto that kind of hurts!" Hinata exclaimed out of the pain inflicted by her still fresh wound.

Boruto instantly loosened his grip on his mother but still held on to her. "I'm sorry, but I'm just glad you're alright. I was so worried."

Hinata also held her son back in a gentle embrace. "Sorry to make you worry Boruto, but mama is doing just fine."

Once the two shared a moment of happiness and relief together, Boruto picked up a letter from the table and handed it to mother. "Someone left this letter outside earlier. It's for you."

Hinata took the letter addressed to her and saw that there was a simple seal upon it that presumably would prevent Boruto from being able to read it. She undid the seal and took out the letter from the envelope to read it.

 _Dear Hinata Hyuga,_

 _First and foremost I would like to sincerely apologise for getting you involved in the situation surrounding the Kumogakure shinobi. It was never my intention for such to happen. However, I would also like to thank you for saving the lives of the Konoha shinobi as you did earlier today. Furthermore, due to your actions we were able to discover that there are those within Konoha who are potentially attempting to work with Kumogakure behind the hokage's back, perhaps planning an eventual coup d'état. This find is of immense significance to the village even though you may no longer be a part of it. You have my sincere gratitude for your assistance._

 _In light of your actions I have come to a final conclusion in regards to your relation with Konoha. I have decided to erase your name from Konoha's list of wanted shinobi. From this day forward you are no longer a rogue ninja and Konoha will no longer pursue you. You may live as you see fit, free from the shackles of your past._

 _I wish you the best of luck for your future. But I also want you to remember, if you ever wish to return back to Konoha, our doors will always be open._

 _Yours sincerely,_

 _The Hokage._

Hinata placed the letter down and had a look of shock on her face. She couldn't believe what she just read. She was free. Finally free to live with her son without fear of being discovered. It was unbelievable and she hugged Boruto out of happiness. It was almost like the beginning of a new life for her.

 **At the same time, in a mansion located within the hill on the other side of the village…**

A man stood on the balcony of the mansion overlooking the village as two ANBU appeared behind him. He remained unphased, looking out into the distance and deep in thought.

"Hokage-sama, we've delivered your letter and made sure that your son picked it up." One of the ANBU informed him.

"Thank you for your work." The hokage replied.

"Was it really okay, letting Hinata Hyuga off like that?" The other ANBU questioned intently, wanting to know what the hokage was thinking.

Thus Naruto turned around and smiled at the two. "Of course it was okay. Because I'm the one who's going to personally bring her back to Konoha. She's my wife after all."

* * *

Hope you liked the chapter and as always I would love to hear your thoughts.

There were some great comments from last time and I'd like to respond to a couple of them:

 **Trife:** As I mentioned at the very beginning, this story is AU and doesn't follow canon. In this story the various nations are not allied with one another, which is why the raikage put a bounty on Hinata's head as he wants the Byakugan.

 **NH Shipper** (Who doesn't ship NH over here?): Don't tempt me man. I just might recreate a Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker scene with Naruto/Boruto. Okay maybe not. But perhaps I could do it in a "omake" kind of setting just for the lols. I don't know, what do you guys think?

 **anne12fink:** I was wondering how long it would be before people started to bring up Himawari. I guess it wasn't that long lol.

 **Chewie Cookies:** Wow, Himawari still being "conceivable"? Now that is an awful pun...just the way I like 'em my friend. That gave me a good laugh :)

Thanks to everyone else who also left comments and showed interest in reading the continuation to the story. This will be all for now and I hope to see you all in the next chapter.


	4. A Looming Threat

**A Looming Threat**

Welcome once again to a new chapter. As before, I have to say that this story has been doing very well so far since its inception and I'm thankful to all of you who've been showing your support. It's been fun writing it so far and I hope to keep it going. So let's continue on with the story.

* * *

Even though Hinata had been up for a little while now, Boruto still slung on to his mother and did not want to let go. It was very unlike his usual self, but the sight his mother in an unconscious state truly shocked the young boy beyond words.

"Are you feeling well now? It doesn't hurt badly anywhere, does it? Is everything going to be okay?" He asked of his mother's wellbeing for the tenth time.

"As I've been saying all along – I'm doing just fine honey. You don't have worry about me anymore." Hinata replied while stroking Boruto's hair ever so gently.

"Are you sure?" Boruto inquired once more with a concerned look in his eyes.

"Of course I'm sure." Hinata replied with a tender smile. "Not to mention mama has overcome much tougher adversities in her time. Compared to them this is nothing at all."

"Is that so? Can you tell me of one?"

Hinata thought for a second and nodded. "Sure. Giving birth to you comes to mind. I still remember how tough that was. Natural childbirth is already painful but you certainly did not make it easy for your Kaa-chan."

Boruto could only imagine how much more devastating the event could have been if it was worse than what he witnessed earlier. He never knew childbirth could be so arduous. It made him feel bad for causing his mother such agony. "I'm sorry about that."

Hinata giggled after hearing her son's confession and caressed his cheek in response. "There's nothing for you to be sorry about. The day I gave birth to you was one of the happiest days of my life. I'm glad your birth happened the way it did without any complications. I wouldn't have it any other way."

Boruto was surprised to hear his mother's words of reconciliation. "But you said it was really painful right, giving birth to me?"

"Yes it was painful, but it was a good kind of pain because it meant you were healthy and strong."

"Pain is good?" Boruto asked in a very confused tone.

Hinata only continued chuckling in response. "Well, it's not something I expect you to understand. Only a mother can truly appreciate what it means to give birth to a child and what goes through her mind during that process. Giving birth and raising you has made me stronger than I ever thought I could be. So just remember, mama isn't going to be taken down that easy. I'm a pretty tough cookie."

His mother's pacifying words finally brought a sense of relief over Boruto and for the first time he felt like he could truly relax. But he still had more questions left to ask.

"How did all of this happen? How did you get hurt?"

Hinata was already expecting an inquiry of that sort and as such thought up an alibi earlier. "I stepped outside for a bit early in the morning to take a walk through the forest when all of a sudden a couple of thugs surrounded me. When they found out that I had nothing on me, they got very angry and attacked. During the scuffle one of them managed hit my leg pretty hard and slash my back with a weapon."

Boruto was both horrified and enraged to learn of his mother's experience. "Then what happened?"

"In the midst of the chaos, mama somehow managed to give them the slip and made sure they couldn't follow me back home. I guess living in this forest for so long and knowing it like the back of my hand really helped. In any case, it was my mistake going outside at a time like that. There are many dangerous people that roam under the cover of the dark, searching for their next victim. So learn from the error of my way and never repeat what I just did. That's a valuable lesson. Sometimes you don't have to make a mistake yourself to learn of its consequences. You can learn from the experiences of others."

Boruto gulped and nodded at the same time as an unsettling feeling washed over him. Truly this incident was a scary one and he would never want it to happen again.

"Now then, want to tell me your side of the story? What happened after I passed out? How did I get all bandaged up like this?" Hinata asked while pointing at the pretty sturdy bandaging around her waist. "This seems to have been done by someone who has a fair amount of knowledge in first aid techniques."

"When you were passed out, I started screaming and shouting in fear…" Boruto admitted despite not wanting to and his mother caught on to this fact.

"Wait, so you got really scared and lost your calm when I passed out?" Hinata now teased her son a little bit for fun. "Could it be that you cried for your mother?"

"KAA-CHAN, stop teasing me! This is not funny!" Boruto chastised his mother given the severity of the situation.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It's kind of rare to ever see you cry. So just imagining my normally cool as cucumber son sobbing over my unconscious self made me kind of happy. I know it's a bit cruel but it shows how much you really do care, even if you may not let it on all the time."

"I find it a bit sad that you'd even question my level of concern for you."

"That's not it at all. I know how much you care. So as I said, I'm sorry." Hinata apologised sincerely to her son. "Anyway, continue with the story."

"As I was saying, hearing my call of distress, a man I had never seen before walked in and offered to lend his hand in treating you. Given the desperate situation, I accepted in a heartbeat. His name was Menma Arashi."

"That's not a name I've heard of in the village. Weird. Did he tell you anything about himself?"

"Yeah, I was curious to know as well. He said that he was new to the village and only arrived yesterday. So he didn't know his way around the area and was wandering the forest when he heard my cries and quickly rushed in to help. He is currently living in the mansion on the hill just outside on the other side of the village."

Hinata was very astonished to hear of his whereabouts. "Oh wow, he's living in that mansion? For the longest time that place has been empty because it was too expensive for anyone in the village to rent. I'm quite surprised someone who just arrived here was able to rent that mansion out. He must be quite rich."

"Yeah, he even went out and bought all the medicine and items that were required to tend to your injuries. I helped by taking him to the pharmacy in the village."

Hinata's eyes widened as she heard of her son's story. "You went out with this man!? What did I tell you about not following strangers!?"

"Well what the heck was I supposed to do!? Say no to him and leave you in the state that you were!? Come on now; think about how I must have been feeling at the time. This man to me was the last hope at a desperate time. I had no choice but to put my faith in him, or watch you…" Boruto looked down at the ground and did not even want to finish his last sentence.

Her son's statement made Hinata realise what he must have been going through at the time and thus she calmed down. "I understand dear. I really do. It's just that I worry about you all the time. You can't blame me for that – you're my one and only son after all. But in any case, he helped you after that?"

Boruto nodded enthusiastically. "YEAH! He turned out to be one of the nicest people I've ever met. He was so cool in how he happened to know about all the medicine that would be required and I watched as he carefully patched up your wound like an expert. It was really amazing."

"I see. I guess we got pretty lucky that a person like him just happened to be passing by at a time of such need." Hinata moved her body around and could feel how well it had been treated. "I need to go thank him myself for coming to our aid and pay him back for all the items he bought."

"Also, he's a really good cook as well." Boruto sang the saviour's praise. "He made this really delicious soup for breakfast that tasted just like yours. He even left some for you as well for when you would wake up. You want to have it right now? I highly recommend it. I'm sure it'll give you a lot of strength."

"Yeah, why not? I am kind of starving after this whole ordeal. Soup sounds like it could be really good, and if you're singing its praise, it has to be delicious." Hinata replied to her son. "But before that, I need to get out of these clothes."

Boruto instantly held up the set of clothes he had brought out earlier for his mother at Naruto's behest that caused the little scuffle between them. Hinata graciously accepted and got changed into them while Boruto went over to the kitchen and set up the food and tableware at the dining table. Once he was done, he came back to help his mother over to the dining table given her injured leg.

"Thanks dear." Hinata expressed her gratitude to her son as she sat at the table in front of a piping hot bowl of soup. It appeared to be absolutely delicious just from the smell and it beckoned her to take a sip.

As Hinata took a spoonful of the chicken flavoured soup, the taste surprised her completely. "You weren't kidding when you said it tasted like the one I make. And it's really good."

"See! What did I tell you?" Boruto grinned as he watched his mother drink the soup while sitting opposite to her.

"Wow…this person really is as amazing as you describe him. I really should thank him for his help. Perhaps I should send him one of my cakes."

"Actually there is a favour he asked of me that I really want to fulfil." Boruto informed his mother.

"A favour?"

"Since he is new to the village, he doesn't know anyone here or his way around the place. So he requested me, if you were doing well, to show him around the village if possible. And I really want to do so as thanks for helping us out. Can I, please?"

Hinata however was not completely convinced. "I don't know Boruto. He seems like a genuinely nice person but I'm not sure if it's okay for you to be meeting him like this, especially when I haven't even met him in person myself."

"Come on Kaa-chan. He helped treat you and he's a really good person. I can go out to the village on my own, so this really shouldn't be a problem. I'll just be showing him some of the main spots in the village. I really do want to thank him. Please, I'm begging you." Boruto requested as earnestly as possible.

Hinata rarely ever saw him this fervent about a matter and after quite a bit of thought, she caved it. "Fine. Given that I'm unable to move properly right now, I'll let you show him around. But it's only going to be the shopping district and the main spots. No going off anywhere else. Are we clear on that?"

"Of course!" Boruto looked genuinely stoked at the prospect of meeting Naruto once more.

"Now that that's taken care of, I think I'll go rest for a bit." Hinata told her son as he supported her to her room and stacked the pillows on the headrest of the bed, allowing her to sit comfortably and lean her injured back on the soft pillows.

To her surprise however, Boruto also jumped into the bed and rested his head on her lap, digging his face into his mother's midsection.

"You want to rest with mama for a bit?" Hinata happily asked her son while gently running her fingers through his hair, knowing full well how much he enjoyed it.

Boruto nodded his head while still keeping it pressed against his mother's abdomen, not wanting to show his face given what he was about to say. "I'm sorry for the mean things I said to you last night. I shouldn't have. Because you're the best mother there is and I'm thankful for everything that you've done for me. I just wanted to say that I…love you."

It was surprising of Boruto to be so honest and direct, but an immense feeling of joy overtook Hinata from her son's heartfelt confession. His words vindicated all the pain she had endured and all the sacrifices she had made since he was conceived.

"I love you too Boruto. You are my pride and joy, the apple of my eye. There is no way you could ever be an unwanted child because to mama you are at the very crux of her life. The bond we share is one that is truly irreplaceable."

Boruto nodded wholeheartedly in agreement with his mother. However, what came next was not something Hinata could have anticipated.

"I don't have anyone to call family other than you. You're the only one I have in this world. So please, don't ever leave me." He said in a very serious yet remorseful tone.

Those words, they shocked Hinata speechless. They took her back to a time when Boruto wasn't even conceived. She remembered that memory quite vividly:

 _Naruto's head was resting on Hinata's lap as he gently caressed her face with his right hand._

 _During that moment, he made a heartfelt request to her. "I don't have anyone to call family other than you. You're the only one I have in this world. So please, don't ever leave me."_

" _Of course, that goes without saying." Hinata replied with the utmost intent of always being there by his side._

However, after all these years, the present Hinata was once again reminded by her son that she never did keep her word to his father. Nothing but pain and heartache overtook her as she remembered the events that transpired leading to her departure. But despite everything that took place in her past, Hinata resolved to rectify the present and the future. She intended to always be there to take care of Boruto and support him whenever he needed her.

Thus Hinata gave her son a reply filled with utmost conviction. "Of course, that goes without saying."

* * *

On the other side of the village, Naruto was currently sitting at a desk in one of the many rooms within his new mansion. He made this particular room his new office and he was carefully reading through the scroll that Hinata had secured from the Kumogakure shinobi for the twentieth time. At that moment the door to his office opened and the two ANBU from before walked in. One of them had a cat mask on while the other wore a very long overcoat with a hoodie and sunglasses that obscured their identities.

"Naruto, the hokage shouldn't be here so far out of Konoha. I really can't agree with that." The one with the cat mask asserted strongly, clearly being in close terms with Naruto due to the way in which he addressed him.

"It's the weekend. I can be wherever I want when I'm off work." Naruto gave a curt response.

"Have you not read that scroll clearly enough!? This isn't a matter of how you spend your free time. There are people out there even within Konoha who are planning to take you out. If they were to find out that you are outside of the village with little to no security protecting you, this would be the perfect opportunity for them to strike. Not to mention, if the Raikage himself is involved as the scroll may suggest and it comes to his attention that you are this close to the border with the Land of Lightning, you could be under some serious threat."

"And you think I care about this little danger?" Naruto asked in an uncaring tone. "I've always had enemies in the past and I'll continue having them in the future. It's just part of being who I am. This isn't going to stop me from doing that which is important to me."

"NARUTO!" The cat masked ANBU was now getting angry and slammed his hand down on the table. "You are the Hokage now, not just some kid without any family or friends! This situation is not a joke!"

"As I said, I DON'T CARE!" Naruto replied in an even angrier tone as he stood up and confronted his ANBU friend. "You have NO idea about the situation I'm in. Do you have a wife who's abandoned you? Do you have a child who you've never even met since his birth? NO? I thought so. After eight long years of relentless searching I've finally located the only family members I have in this world and now you're telling me I can't even be near them? Stop with this nonsense! I don't care if my job is being the Hokage, but once I'm off work I'm just a father who wishes to spend whatever quality time he can with his son and a husband who's trying to rebuild shattered ties with his wife. And there's NOTHING that can stop me from me from doing so!"

The cat masked ANBU was surprised by Naruto's sudden outburst and subsequently sighed in defeat. "As stubborn as always. Even as the hokage you haven't changed at all. I understand how you feel but I'm just trying to look out for you, not just as the Hokage, but as a friend."

Naruto pouted like a little kid in response. "You're just a freaking cat lover and yet you try to act all concerned and stuff. It doesn't suit you."

That previous statement made the cat masked ANBU, nicknamed "Cat Lover", very frustrated. "I am NOT a cat lover. I HATE cats!"

"Then why are you called Cat Lover?" Naruto asked with a mischievous smile on his face.

"BECAUSE YOU'RE THE ONE WHO KEEPS GIVING ALL OF US ANBU WEIRD NICKNAMES!" Cat lover flipped out.

"But it's fun though thinking up special nicknames that suit the people working under me." Naruto admitted to Cat Lover's further annoyance.

While the bickering between the two continued, the other ANBU in the room finally decided to make his presence known. "I hate to break up your conversation, but I have some matters that I wish to make known quite urgently."

"What is it Creepy Crawly?" Naruto asked curiously, knowing that whenever this man spoke it was generally of profound importance.

"As instructed, I've been…questioning…the Kumogakure shinobi we captured earlier, and he has divulged some information that I believe is of very serious cause for concern. Have a listen." Creepy Crawly brought out a voice recorder from his pocket and started to play a recording.

The Kumogakure shinobi that Hinata had taken out earlier, who was then subsequently captured by the ANBU was the one being interrogated in this track:

" _Will you speak?" Creepy crawly asked in a calm yet deadly tone._

" _YES! YES, I'll speak! So please, no more! Make them stop!" The enemy ninja begged desperately._

" _Very well then. Tell me, the scroll that you were extracting as part of your mission – who exactly was it from?"_

" _I h-honestly do not know. The mission my team was assigned was to meet up with the agent from Konoha and accept the scroll from him. During our scuffle with the shinobi from Konoha, that agent slipped away and I never got to confirm his identity."_

 _Hearing his answer, the Creepy Crawly raised his hand in disapproval._

" _B-BUT! There is something else that I do know. This is information the Raikage shared with only a handful of us in regards to the Hyuga that he placed a bounty on. It would a-appear that the group in Konoha shared some very important facts with the Raikage about the defected Hyuga that got him interested in her in the first place." The Kumo ninja explained. "Our leader found out from the Konoha informants that the Hyuga in question was Hinata Hyuga, the heiress to the Hyuga clan. Of course, that alone makes her an important target, but what makes her even more valuable is the fact that she is supposed to be the wife of the current Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki. Although the Raikage has always been interested in the Hyuga's Byakugan, I think in this case his true motive behind placing such a hefty bounty on Hinata Hyuga's capture is due to her relation to the current Hokage."_

As the recording came to an end, Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief from the information he just heard.

"T-This is impossible!" He exclaimed in a shaky voice. "My marriage with Hinata was never made public. It has always remained a secret. Only her immediate family members and my closest friends know about my relationship to her."

"This is really bad news." Cat Lover added. "If the Raikage knows about Hinata's background, both she and by proxy you could be in big trouble if he manages to get his hands on her."

"The Raikage's crossing the line if he tries to use Hinata to get to me!" Naruto's voice was now shaking with rage. He opened up the drawer on his table, took out a fox mask from within and wore it over his face. He then stormed out of his office and into the basement room where the captive was being kept with the two ANBU in tow.

As soon as the Kumogakure ninja saw the three walk in, especially Creepy Crawly, his face was overcome with fear and he shook his head in desperation. "Please, no more! I told you everything that I know! Not the insects! PLEASE!"

Naruto walked over to the man and firmly grasped his jaw with one hand, their faces now only just a handful of inches apart.

"Listen to me and do so carefully, for I have a message I wish for you to deliver to your boss." He demanded in a menacing tone. "Tell the Raikage that the Hokage sends his regards and that he isn't very pleased with the shenanigans the Raikage has been pulling within the Land of Fire. Although the relationship between Konoha and Kumo has been pretty bad to begin with, the Hokage is willing to sit down and talk out a peaceful solution between the two nations if the Raikage is willing. HOWEVER, and this is the important part – if the Raikage continues to keep placing bounties on the people of this country and attempts to capture any more leaf shinobi, the next bounty that will be placed by Konoha will be on the Raikage's head…and the Hokage himself will be the one to carry it out!"

Finishing that last statement, Naruto punched the Kumo ninja so hard that his body flew backwards into the wall and the chair he was tied to shattered into pieces from the impact, knocking the guy out for the second time in one day.

"That one's for her!" Naruto said as he took off his mask and two of his clones carried the enemy ninja out of the room. "Throw him somewhere on the other side of the border so that Kumogakure can pick him up."

Naruto now turned towards the ANBU who were stunned silent after hearing his message.

"ARE YOU INSANE!?" Cat Lover shouted at the top of his lungs. "You just practically announced war on the Raikage with your last statement."

"Trust me; I know what I'm doing." Naruto replied as calmly as possible while walking back to his office.

"Do you? Because it really doesn't seem like it." Cat Lover asked back while following closely behind.

Once they reached his office, Naruto turned around and looked at the ANBU dead in the eyes to explain his thoughts. "Before I became hokage, for the past eight years I've been roaming all over the Land of Fire by myself searching for Hinata while doing high level undercover missions for the previous hokage. I've found out that this isn't the first time the Raikage has tried to secretly capture a Konoha shinobi, and it probably won't be the last, because he seems to have an unhealthy obsession with the powers the various clans of Konoha have. The previous Hokage became aware of this but were too afraid of starting a conflict and were passive about the matter, hoping it'd stop over time. But look where that has gotten us. Our own people have now started sell us out to this man. If we leave everything as it is, the Raikage's actions will only get progressively worse over time and he'll think he has a free pass to step on our toes as he pleases. I simply cannot allow that. As the Hokage every person in Konoha is precious to me and I'm not going to sit around and see them being threatened in this manner. It's time we sent back a message and stood by it. They say that when two superpowers bear arms against one another, both parties become hesitant to act in fear of the other side retaliating, which could in an odd turn of events eventually lead to peaceful negotiations. Let's hope that works out in this case. If not, I really will have to personally deal with the Raikage myself."

Cat Lover could see that Naruto had put quite a bit of thought behind his actions. As such he once again sighed in defeat. "Fine, have it your way. You're the hokage after all."

"Good to know I have your support. Now we just need to figure out who it is within Konoha that are selling out their fellow shinobi." Naruto took the scroll from earlier and handed it to the ANBU. "Take this to forensics and see if they can recover any more hidden information from it. We'll have further talks about this matter on Monday once I get back to Konoha."

"Shouldn't you return now given the urgency of the situation? I'm sure once forensics read through and analyse this scroll they'll be looking for you." Cat Lover stated as a matter of fact.

"Sorry, but I can't return yet. I have my first outing with my son tomorrow and there's no way I'm missing that. So make up some excuse to the others about why I can't be at the office right now." He ordered the ANBU with a large grin across his face leading to Cat Lover shaking his head in defeat once more.

"Sometimes I wonder how you can be so serious one moment and then chill the next. Fine, I'll think up an alibi. Just make sure you're back on time for the meeting on Monday."

Thus the two ANBU took their leave and set off on their way back to Konoha. Naruto on the other hand walked over to the large balcony behind his office and looked out into the distance in the direction where Hinata and Boruto lived on the other side of the village. Even though there were many serious matters he needed to tend to as the Hokage, Naruto couldn't help but feel a sense of joy just thinking about being able to see his son once again.

* * *

Hope you liked the chapter. Did you get the identity of the two ANBU? Props will go to all next chapter who guess them correctly. This was something really cool for me since its a throwback to one of my older works. Also, as I said last time, the setting of this story is very much AU, so the Raikage's actions are rather hostile towards Konoha.

 **WhightGriger:** I'm not sure about whether I'll be adding characters from the newer generation yet, but as you can see with this chapter, I will be adding more characters to the story in general.

 **m3i T3rumi:** You know what, you are right. Everything does happen for a reason and things will *hopefully* turn out for the best in the long run. Okay, I know how things will turn out but I'm intentionally being vague here...I'm not evil :)

 **ZirconK:** So you want Naruto to get a Jyuuken from Hinata, followed by a passionate kiss. Then you want them to spend a night together so that Himawari can appear, only to be spoiled by Naruto. I won't spoil how things will actually turn out, but I definitely laughed a lot at those sequence of events.

 **Jane:** I'm glad someone else also likes the fact that Boruto is very protective of his mother. I think it makes sense since she is the only family he has had in this story. At least up until now anyway.

 **rolan00, Albert da Snake, naruhinakiralacus** : You guys all picked up some of the finer details on why Hinata may have left Naruto from the little monologue he said in the last chapter, but there is a lot more going on beyond what he mentioned. Over time the blanks will start to fill up and hopefully it'll become more clear as to what happened.

Thanks also to **Chewie Cookies, gio08, anne12fink, myzticmoon, You are troublesome** (although I'm not actually a lady) **, Blackcurse11, piccolaNaruto18, jasmine 'n lavender, AUMaker, Misha, magikiz2sick, Fangirl17** (yay I have a fangirl...maybe not) **, orca285, PuppyLoveCharm, mocha lala, alga18, Flameraven, Hinata Hyuga Hime, I'm Me, Yuyi Hime, jztkn11, chandu-itachi, A.S.-sama, Trainer1232, willow1996** and the many others who have left me kind words or constructive criticism. They definitely help keep me chugging along.

That is all for today. Let me know what you thought and I hope to see you all next time.


	5. Master and Student

**Master and Student**

* * *

 **The next morning…**

Boruto was currently standing in front of the entrance to the village in anticipation of Naruto. He arrived not too long ago but was wondering how he would find the one he was looking for. But just on cue, the person in question tapped his shoulder from behind, catching him by surprise.

"Ero-jiji! There you are!" Boruto shouted happily after seeing the blonde-haired ninja.

Naruto grimaced as several passer-bys turned around and gave him questioning glances. "Can you not call me that? It's very unflattering and people are going to start thinking I'm some kind of weirdo or something."

"But you are a pervy old man. What else am I supposed to call you?"

" _I am NOT a pervert. And even if I am, I was only perving over your mom, who happens to be my wife. I don't see how there's anything wrong with that. Heck, if I didn't ever "perv" over your mom, you wouldn't even be here. But I can't say any of that to you right now because first of all you're too young, and second, it'd give away my identity. GAAAAH what a dilemma!"_ Naruto wracked his mind inwardly given the current plight with his son.

"Are we gonna just stand here or do you want to get going already?" Boruto questioned, causing Naruto to snap out of his own world.

"Y-Yeah, I do want to get to know the village, so let's get moving." Naruto replied enthusiastically, even though touring the village was in reality just an excuse for him to spend more time with his son.

Regardless, the two started to walk around the village together so that Boruto could show his father all the important spots.

"By the way I was wondering, how did you find me?" Boruto asked out of curiosity. "I arrived at the village not too long ago and you said yesterday that you'd find me if I was in the village. How were you able to do that?"

"It's a bit of a secret for now, but it's related to one of my abilities as a ninja. I'll tell you more about it a bit later." Naruto gave an answer that didn't quite satisfy Boruto, so he quickly changed the topic of conversation to one that was rather important to him. "Incidentally, how's your mother doing?"

"She's a lot better now. She still can't walk perfectly yet, but other than that the injury on her back seems to be healing very well and it's not very painful at all. The medicine and bandages you applied have been working wonders. Kaa-chan told me to inform you that she's very grateful for your help and that once she's fully recovered, she'd like to meet you to personally thank you."

"That's great to hear and I'm glad that everything is working out well. I look forward to meeting your mother properly in the future." Even as he made the last statement, Naruto could only feel nervous about that day to come when he'd have to finally confront Hinata. "On that note, did you keep the fact that I'm a ninja a secret from your mother?"

"Yeah of course. I gave you my word right? I never go back on my word because that is what Kaa-chan always taught me."

Naruto smiled at his son's response. To never go back on one's word, it was his way of the ninja, as it was Hinata's. A long time ago that is what connected the two of them together. It would appear that their son had inherited their way, and it brought him great joy.

"You seem to be a bit out of it today. Come on, snap out of it!" Boruto gave Naruto a strong shake that brought him to a halt and stopped his mind from drifting away.

"I-I'm sorry. I was just thinking a bit. Anyway, where are we right now?" Naruto asked back while looking around, only to find himself standing in front of a medium sized building. From a quick glance the place appeared to be some kind of educational institution.

"Since it's on the way I thought I'd show you. This is the school I go to. My classroom's on the far side."

Naruto became really excited to learn more about his son's education because after all, it was of course a parent's duty to look after their child's studies. "I see, very interesting indeed. Since we are on the subject, I'm kind of curious. How good are you in your studies Boruto?"

The young boy puffed up his chest feeling proud of his accomplishments. "Not to brag or anything, but the teachers call me a genius. I'm the best in my class. Well, I do enjoy learning but part of the reason behind my success is also because mama is so serious about my studies. Under her constant watchful eyes I really have no choice but to be good."

Naruto was pleasantly surprised to hear of his son's prodigious status when it came to education, but he wasn't as astonished by the fact that Hinata was so keen about their son's achievements. She always struck him as the kind person who would be very sincere about such matters when it came to her own offspring.

"Wow, you're quite amazing aren't you Boruto? I remember when I was your age I flunked pretty bad in my studies, often ending up at the bottom of my class." Naruto admitted despite his embarrassment while rubbing the back of his head. He was just glad Boruto took after his mother in regards to academia rather than himself.

As the two continued walking to their next destination, Boruto became curious about Naruto's last comment. "Say, do shinobi go to school as well? If so, what do you learn there?"

"Yes, all ninjas admit their children at the academy once they reach a certain age. The academy is essentially a special school for young ninjas where they not only learn all the subjects any other children would at school, but also the basics behind the ninja arts."

Boruto couldn't help but feel intrigued by an institution that taught one how to perform various ninja arts. "That sounds like a lot of fun."

After walking for ten minutes or so, they two finally arrived at the shopping district of the village, the place where everyone went to buy all of their daily necessities.

"This is the shopping district. All the stores within the village are located here and this is where you'll find everything you'll need. We did come here for a bit yesterday to stop by at the pharmacy if you remember, but this time I'll show you around properly." Boruto explained before taking Naruto's hand and dragging him off into the crowd of people, showing him each and every shop in the district with great enthusiasm.

As Naruto toured the area together with his son who was just as hyperactive as he was, running from one place to another with endless energy, he saw Boruto stop in front of a shop even though it was only for a brief moment. Upon closer inspection he noticed that Boruto was looking quite intently at a remote controlled aircraft that was on display at the store, but before he could do much else Boruto dragged him off to the next destination.

Eventually after they had exhausted every single store that was in the village, the father and son duo stopped at a ramen store where they ended up competing against each other to see who could eat the most bowls of ramen. To Naruto's shock Boruto was able to go toe to toe against him despite his ramen eating prowess. He was happy to know that he finally had fair competition in this particular field and that his son had inherited his drive for ramen consumption.

Eventually once they were completely full and could not eat a single bite more, the two set out once more and this time Boruto stopped in front of one store in the particular, even though it was currently closed. "This is the bakery my mama runs. She is known to make the best cakes in the village. If you ever want any baked products, this is the place to be."

"Himawari Bakery." Naruto smiled while reading the sign above the store, given the relation between the name of the place and Hinata herself. He could definitely imagine Hinata excelling at running such a business given her innate aptitude for baking. "I would definitely like to try out your mother's baking sometime. I imagine business is booming huh?"

"I wouldn't say it's anything crazy. As you can see it's a pretty small shop and mama runs it all by herself since she can't afford any other staff. So I try to help out with little things as much as I can. When it comes to money, we barely make do every month with what mama earns from this bakery."

Naruto felt deeply saddened inside after hearing of his family's dire financial situation. As a husband and a father it should have been his duty to always provide for his family and make sure of their wellbeing. This was especially true since Naruto himself was extremely well off due to his long ninja career of completing high ranked missions and his current position as the hokage, which was rather well paid. Even though he was able and wanted from the bottom of his heart to end his family's financial woes this very instant, unfortunately that was something he just couldn't do as it would blow his cover to Hinata. Thus with a heavy heart he could only sympathise with his son for now.

"You know, this bakery reminds me a lot of my wife. She used to be an amazing baker herself. The cakes she made were incomparably better than any other." Naruto stated proudly.

Boruto however took what his father said as a statement of challenge. "Oh yeah? I don't care how good your wife's cakes were, but my mom's ones are definitely better."

Naruto decided he would play along for fun and as such continued the verbal dispute. "I don't think so. Trust me, my wife's ones were simply amazing beyond words."

"No way! My mom is the best baker in the whole world. There is no one who is better than her. I guarantee it."

"You're just a naïve little child. You haven't seen anything of the world yet. And by the world I mean my wife's baking. Just give up already!"

Thus Naruto and Boruto kept arguing over who was the best baker, not willing to back down on their stance, even though the person they were arguing for was one and the same.

"My mother…is…the…best. So I won't…give up." Boruto announced once more despite being worn out from the non-stop argument.

Part of the reason why Naruto continued bickering with his son thus far was to see how much his mother truly meant to him. Given Boruto's dedication and his willingness to go to any length to defend his mother's honour, it was quite easy to tell how much he truly cared about her. Thus Naruto finally decided to yield to his son's will, knowing that despite whoever won the argument between them, the outcome would be the same.

"I suppose if you're this insistent then your mother may just be better, only by a little bit though."

"I said so from the very beginning. Just wait until Kaa-chan gets a little better. Once you have her cake you'll definitely understand what I'm saying." Boruto explained his mother's greatness, but at the same time came to appreciate Naruto's desire to protect his wife's honour. "You really care about your wife don't you?"

"Of course!" Naruto gave an emphatic response. "After all, she's not only just my wife, but my baby mama as well."

Boruto was shocked to hear of this new fact. "Wait, you have a child!? Is it a boy or a girl? How old are they?"

"I have a seven year old son, but unfortunately my wife took him with her and left me before he was even born."

"That's really sad to hear." Boruto sympathised with Naruto for his wife leaving him with their child, but he didn't want to ask why since his mother taught him not to encroach on other people's privacy. "Your son's the same age as me. I bet you want to meet him."

"I do, but it's okay because I know he's doing really well."

"How?"

"I guess you could call it father's intuition." Naruto kneeled down and patted Boruto's head with a smile. "Besides, I'm closer to him than he thinks."

"I see, so you're being a good dad and watching over him, even though he doesn't know of your presence in his life. That's very nice of you." Boruto complimented while feeling a little sad inside that his own father was nowhere near as caring or thoughtful.

"Thanks Boruto. It means a lot coming from you." Naruto genuinely expressed his gratitude to the young boy knowing their true relationship. "In any case, I was wondering if you would like to go to the park we passed by earlier with me. I have something to show you there."

"Sure." Boruto agreed instantly as he always loved playing in that park with his mother and his friends from school. He was curious as well as to what Naruto wanted to show him.

As such the two walked over to the rather large park where many children were playing at this time given it was the weekend and found themselves a relatively unpopulated corner. Here Naruto pulled out a gift wrapped box and handed it to Boruto.

"W-What's this? When did you even get it?" Boruto asked out of surprise as he received the box which was half as big as he was.

"We ninjas are trained to be sneaky, so I had a clone secretly grab it earlier and pass it on to me when we were entering the park. Consider it a gift as thanks for showing me around the village today. Try opening it."

Boruto gave a quick nod and started to tear through the wrapping with great enthusiasm. However, it was the moment Boruto realised what was inside the box that was the most precious to Naruto as he saw his son's face absolutely light up in joy from receiving his long wanted remote controlled aircraft. Even though it was Boruto who was delighted beyond words from receiving the gift, Naruto could feel a true sense of happiness within him that he couldn't describe with words either. For the first time in his life Naruto understood what it meant as a parent to fulfil one of your child's wishes. He could finally recognise the fact that a child's happiness was the parent's happiness. It nearly brought tears to his eyes.

However, Boruto's enthusiasm suddenly died down as he looked towards Naruto and shook his head side to side. "I'm sorry but I can't accept this. You already helped my mother yesterday, so I'm the one who is indebted to you. I'd feel bad if I were to take anything more from you."

It was also at this moment that Naruto got to know his son better. He had already noticed a part of this trait earlier, but Boruto was unlike the average child of his age. Even though he appeared to be hyperactive and rambunctious on the outside just like Naruto, deep within he was sensitive and compassionate, just like Hinata.

"You really don't have to sweat the small stuff Boruto. Good children deserve rewards for their hard work, so you could consider this a reward for all of your hard work in your studies and helping out your mother." Naruto explained but once again Boruto shook his head sideways.

"Mama has been working very hard in order to buy this toy for me, so I'm sure she would feel bad if I were to take this home with me. Plus the fact that she is doing well once again because of your treatment is the best gift you could possibly ever give me. So I don't need this." Boruto said to Naruto with the utmost sincerity as he handed him back the gift box, not an ounce of regret appearing in his eyes.

Naruto could almost see an image of Hinata standing behind Boruto. He could sense Hinata's undoubted influence upon him, and felt proud of the son she had raised. After all, Hinata's kind and understanding nature was one of the very reasons why he fell in love with her in the first place, and to see those very traits reflected within their son was something he was glad of. Thus Naruto took the box from Boruto and set it aside for now.

"Actually Boruto, there is something else that I wanted to tell you, which is the real reason why I asked you to accompany me here in the first place. So please hear me out." Naruto requested earnestly as he kneeled down to bring himself at eye level with his son.

Boruto was a little taken aback by the sudden seriousness in Naruto's tone, but obliged nonetheless. "What is it?"

"I know this may be difficult for you to believe at first, but it is still something very important that you must know about." Naruto placed both hands on Boruto's shoulders and hardened his expression for what he was about to say. "Boruto…you are a ninja."

There was a moment of silence between the two before Boruto took a few steps back.

"Come on, stop kidding around. If you think that's supposed to be some kind of a joke then it's not funny." Boruto replied while laughing wryly, but that eventually came to a stop when he saw that the stern look on Naruto's face remained. "Y-You can't be serious. This joke isn't funny anymore."

"I'm not joking Boruto. I'm being dead serious here. Do you remember earlier when you asked me how I found you? I have a certain level of sensory capability that allows me to sense the presence of other ninjas, and since you're the only ninja besides me in this village, I was able to locate your position amongst the general populace. You may not realise this yourself yet, but I've known about the fact that you're a ninja since the moment we met."

However, Boruto still seemed unconvinced. It was just too much to take for him. "I…I just can't believe this."

"Fine, if you don't believe me then I'll prove it to you. Take this." Naruto replied and handed Boruto a small square piece of paper.

"What is this?" Boruto was a bit confused while holding the piece of paper in his right hand.

"I'm sure you're already aware that ninjas are able to control fire, water, wind, lightning and earth through ninja arts. What you may not know is that every ninja has an innate affinity from birth towards one of those classical elements. That piece of paper I just gave you reacts in a very specific way to a shinobi's powers. It should both prove the existence of your innate capabilities as a ninja and also your elemental affinity. All you have to do is focus all of your concentration on to that piece of paper and watch something unbelievable happen."

Boruto was still having troubles accepting everything he was being told, but his curiosity was now catching up to him. What if in the off chance that this man was speaking the truth? Even if it sounded impossible, he just had to know. Thus Boruto let out a deep breath and focused his concentration on to the piece of paper in his hand.

"That's right Boruto, concentrate your senses onto that piece of paper. Only then can your power flow freely through it."

Boruto kept focusing, yet nothing happened. Time flowed by but nothing changed. It all seemed to be for naught. Just as he was about give up on this whole charade and chalk it up as a cruel joke, he decided to give it one final push and placed every ounce of his concentration on to the piece of paper. His thoughts faded away into the background and during that single moment something unbelievable happened. The piece of paper split in half right down the middle. Boruto instantly lost his grip and the two pieces of paper were blown away by the wind.

Naruto had a huge grin across his face from what he witnessed. "It would appear you have an affinity to the wind – just like me. Do you believe me now?"

Boruto fell down on to his back in disbelief. There's no way that piece of paper could have been cut down the middle with such precision by any normal person while simply holding on to it. Could it be true? Could he actually be a ninja?

"H-How is this possible?" Boruto asked in a shaky voice. "My mother isn't a shinobi. Then how could I be one?"

It was at that moment when Boruto reached the same conclusion that Naruto stated out loud, "It would appear that your father was a ninja."

Suddenly everything started to make sense to Boruto. Everything started to fall into place. "Is that why Kaa-chan never told me about Tou-chan? Is that why she hates the shinobi so much? Is that why she never told me that I'm a ninja myself?"

Naruto understood the questions that were going through his son's mind, and despite knowing the answers to all of them, he pretended otherwise. It was not yet time for him to learn of the entire truth. "I don't know the exact details behind your mother's actions, but one thing that I do know is that you have great potential as a ninja, and I would hate to see it go to waste. That is why I'm willing train you in my free time from now on. I can show you what it means to be a ninja. I can teach you how to harness your innate powers. Every ninja requires a teacher to guide them in achieving their true potential. I'd be happy to become your master. So the question now is – will you become my student?"

There were so many questions that were going through his head right now, so many in fact that it was overwhelming. But Boruto already knew his answer, because he was always fascinated by the shinobi despite everyone telling him otherwise. The fact that he himself could potentially wield the powers of a shinobi was simply awe-inspiring to him.

"What do you say Boruto? Due to my specific choice of work I never did get to have a student of my own. Will you accept me as your master and become my very first student?" Naruto asked his son while extending his hand forward.

Without any further hesitation Boruto grabbed his hand back and shouted a resounding, "YES!"

Thus Naruto pulled Boruto back up to his feet and jumped several steps backwards. He then brought out a haori from within his black jacket and wore it in one clean motion. The white cape with red fiery embroidery at the bottom looked absolutely amazing in Boruto's eyes.

"You see Boruto; extraordinary ninjas are given unique titles by their fellow shinobi and enemies alike. Throughout the years I have earned many a title, but none as great as this particular one by which the shinobi far and wide across the world recognise me as." Naruto explained as he spun around to show the words "Fourth Hokage" etched on to the back of his haori. "From this day forward, you Boruto Namikaze will be my one and only student, and I the Fourth Hokage will be your master."

* * *

Yes you read that correct. It's not a typo. Naruto is indeed the 4th hokage and this is one of the key plot points in this story. Aside from that I have a small question this time for you guys: Would you like to see Boruto awaken the Byakugan? I already know the answer for this story but I'd love to hear your opinion. I guess I'll post what the general consensus is (if there is one) next time so that we can compare it to what happens in the story a bit later. I'm interested to know.

From last time, props to **Biotechnus, Blackcurse11, Blacky2010, dewi nhl, romalovesfanfic, place for ad, 61394, PuppyLoveCharm, Trainer1232, NaruHinaRyu, Tomo, ZirconK** and **Jane** for getting the identities of Kiba and Shino as the ANBU. Yes I went with some of the silliest nicknames I could think of.

Now, on to some responses to queries/comments from last time. I put them at the end of chapters so that others can read if interested and maybe find some answers/interesting facts of their own:

 **Jane:** Thank you for the appreciation. Just as a little secret between the two of us (even though everyone can read it lol), there is no team 7 or team 8 in this story. I'll leave you (and others) to guess what the formation of Naruto and Hinata's team(s) may have looked like ;)

 **Blackcurse11:** I don't like the Raikage as much as the next person, but man, destroying the entirety of Kumo might be a bit much don't you think?

 **Blacky2010:** Yes, another appreciator of Boruto! Thank you for your kind words, and trust me, you can never ramble enough to get me bored :)

 **place for ad:** I laughed my backside off at the thought of Tora's owner becoming an ANBU level ninja to catch her own cat. As for Kiba and Shino, I don't think they are unsupportive of Naruto and Hinata at all. As ANBU and his friend, they are just trying to look out for the Naruto since he is in danger from various parties.

 **61394:** I get your point. Shino seems a bit more suited for ANBU than Kiba. But I guess I kind of always imagine both Kiba and Shino together. So they're both ANBU in this story.

 **flornoir:** I'm happy you found the story as well. I'm always kind of fascinated how people discover my stories.

 **naruhinakiralacus:** Yes, Hinata did break her promise to Naruto, but that only goes to show how serious the situation must have been right? It's all building up to something.

 **myzticmoon:** As much as I may love writing this story, I don't think I could do it every day haha. But I imagine you said it as a joke :)

 **Stormbane:** Glad I was able to create some good suspense.

 **magikiz2sick:** Hinata meeting Naruto and Boruto finding out about Naruto are indeed two of the main outcomes of this story, but they aren't the very end goals. There is more that will happen afterwards as you can kind of see from the whole conspiracy that is building up in the background.

 **kentut:** Actually there will be certain flashbacks to the past showing Naruto and Hinata's early days eventually. That'll explain more about what happened between them as well.

 **Fangirl17:** I'm glad that you are accepting of the fact that something will happen once Naruto and Hinata come face to face, because something will indeed happen. But as I said to someone else before, *hopefully* things will work out for the best in the end. You'll just have to find out...hehe.

 **saiyanvegeta:** You know, I actually agree with most of what you said. The point here is that Naruto did indeed make a mistake, as all human beings do. But he has recognised his mistake and wishes to rectify it. That's something hopefully we can all relate to. He isn't a perfect person but once you learn more about why Hinata left him, you may actually come to sympathise with him or still disagree with him. That'll be up to the reader to decide. But one thing is certain though, he has definitely been searching for his family as soon as Hinata left and he wants to get back with them. Also I can tell you that the reunion between Naruto and Hinata won't just be a slap to the face followed by a hardcore make out session to produce Himawari. That's just silly and I definitely want to put more depth into the story and characters than that.

 **NaruHinaRyu:** I should preface this by saying that I absolutely loved reading your long and detailed reviews. They were a real treat and it made me understand what I did right and what I might need to focus on explaining more in the future. Interestingly enough, I think you're probably the closest to deciphering what may have happened between Naruto and Hinata. Of course your guess can't yet be perfect since there are still quite a few key elements I have yet to reveal (like the fact that Naruto is the 4th Hokage in this chapter) that will piece together this whole puzzle, but overall I was pleasantly surprised by how close you got given the current level of information. Also, don't worry. I absolutely HATE the whole cheating/NTR rubbish. I didn't (nor will I ever) write a story based around cheating. Naruto definitely did not cheat on Hinata and the plot is based around something else entirely.

That is all for now. As always I absolutely adore reading what all of you have to say. Until next time, take care :)


	6. Hokage and the Hyuga

**Hokage and the Hyuga**

* * *

 **The next morning…**

Naruto was asleep in one of the bedrooms within his mansion and was having one of the best dreams he could possibly wish to have.

"Hinata-chan…let's have another kid. If it's a girl we can name her Himawari and she'll be the best baker in the world!" He suggested to Hinata while giving the pillow, which in his sleep appeared to him as his wife, a very passionate kiss. The pillow's texture however was anything but that of a human tongue and Naruto was abruptly woken up as he coughed and choked over the love-making session he was about to have with his pillow.

"ARRRGGGHHH DISGUSTING!" Naruto yelled and threw the pillow across the room in annoyance, before sighing in pity of his current state. "I have a son yet I'm still having these kinds of dreams. But then again I haven't had any action for over 8 years and I'm still pretty young, so can anyone really blame me? I only wonder, does Hinata feel this way too sometimtes?"

Although several questions popped up in his mind, when he looked over to the clock at the desk next to his bedside, Naruto nearly fell out of his bed. "OH SNAP! I overslept through the alarm for over an hour. Shikamaru's gonna kill me for disappearing from Konoha and now being late. I've got to hurry."

Thus Naruto quickly got changed into his regular work attire and made a mad dash towards Konoha. Although it was still very early in the morning, it took several hours to travel from this village to Konoha even for a ninja like Naruto, who was widely known as one of the fastest. Unfortunately for Naruto, he was so ecstatic about finding his wife and son after so many years that he was having troubles sleeping last night out of excitement. Add to it the nice dream he was having about Hinata and himself once he did fall asleep, Naruto was now in a pretty flustered state as he ran like the wind through the woods, plains and many other terrains that were on his way to Konoha.

After multiple hours of travel time, Naruto finally arrived at Konoha but did not bother walking through the entrance. Rather he simply took a shortcut and jumped from rooftop to rooftop until eventually he reached the Hokage's office, and jumped in unceremoniously through the window, landing right behind his desk.

"Late." Came a simple yet curt comment from Shikamaru, who was already working through a pile of paperwork.

Naruto looked at the clock and saw that he was about half an hour behind schedule and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "Sorry Shikamaru, I overslept a little bit. It's only half an hour though. It's no big deal right?"

Shikamaru however did not take Naruto's actions in mere jest and had a very serious look on his face. "It's not the fact that you're late that has been bothering me. Could you pray tell where you've been this past weekend? I find that a whole bunch of ninja assigned to the missions near the border to the Land of Lightning come back heavily injured and then two ANBU return with a scroll addressed to the Raikage speaking of a coup d'état against the Hokage. Yet amidst all of this madness, YOU, the Hokage were nowhere to be found. WHERE WERE YOU FOR THE PAST TWO DAYS?!"

Naruto was genuinely afraid of the pure anger that was behind Shikamaru's tone. He was normally a very calm and collected man, but given Naruto's unpredictable nature, the Nara was in constant stress while assuming the role of the Hokage's advisor, one that was driving him insane day after day.

"S-Shikamaru-san, let us c-calm down and t-think this through, shall we?" Naruto replied in a very shaky voice.

"CALM DOWN?! How am I supposed to calm down when the Hokage suddenly disappears from the village without any notice whatsoever? You are no longer a free ninja who can roam the world as his heart desires. You are the Hokage now and that means you need to think before you take any actions. We had no idea where you even went. What if something happened to you? We won't even be able to come to your aid if you act so impulsively. Seriously Naruto, what were you thinking?"

Naruto looked down and assumed a serious tone of his own this time. "I've found Hinata. Not only her, but my son as well."

"WHAT?!" Shikamaru's eyes widened in disbelief. "You're joking right?"

"No, I'm being dead serious. I heard rumours that Hinata may have been spotted in a border village near the Land of Lightning. Even though I assigned a few people to the search, I couldn't just sit here and wait. That's why I left of my own accord and found her during this personal mission of mine."

"But Naruto, given the information we just found out, you understand the danger you are in right? Until we figure out who the individuals are that are plotting against you from within the shadows, you aren't safe, especially by yourself away from the village. You must remember that your role is of the Hokage right now."

"I understand Shikamaru. I absolutely do. But this is a matter concerning my family. Even if I'm the Hokage, they are people I simply cannot ignore. I won't make the same mistake I made in regards to them 8 years ago. Now that I've finally found my family, this time I have to be there for them at all costs. That is my firm resolve and I'll not go back on my word at any cost."

Shikamaru could feel the intensity of Naruto's emotions through his words and he could understand them, given that he had a wife and child of his own. He wondered that if he were in Naruto's place, perhaps he would have done the same. As such the Nara sighed heavily. "If it's concerning Hinata and your son, it doesn't matter what anyone says, you're going to do whatever it takes to bring them back. I can tell that much. Even though I can't believe I'm saying this, but as your friend who has watched you suffer over their loss for all these years, you have my support. I'll cover for you when necessary, but only during the weekends so that you can do what it takes to bring them back. Don't make me regret saying this."

Naruto's eyes became round and teary from Shikamaru's reply and he grasped his advisor in a bone crushing hug. "I knew you were the right person to share my secret! You are a real bro Shikamaru. Despite how harsh you may be towards me when it comes to Hokage duties, deep down you are a true friend who supports me better than anyone else. Thanks for everything Shikamaru. I'm glad you're my advisor."

"I get it! I get it! Let go off me man!" Shikamaru barely managed to get out of the uncomfortable grasp Naruto had him in by using all his strength. "We'll talk about this in detail later. For now you have get to your appointed visit at the academy. You're already short on time, so I'd hurry if I were you."

"Oh snap you're right! I'll see you later." Thus without wasting a second, Naruto was off like the wind just as he had come in not too long ago.

Shikamaru sighed once more as he got back to his paperwork. "This is all too troublesome."

 **At the academy…**

Iruka was currently teaching a class of the newest batch of students who had entered into the academy this year to start their school life and ninja training. The children of many of Naruto's friends were enrolled as part of this class, who were now the next generation of upcoming shinobi in Konoha.

"Okay class, in today's lesson we'll be learning about the various leaders of our village – in other words, the Hokage." Iruka started off on his lecture. "I'm sure all of you are aware of the identities of the Hokage, but it's also important that you learn of their storied legacies as well, because it is their individual legacies that have shaped Konoha into what it is today. As such, let us start from the very beginning."

The children all listened attentively since they were genuinely curious to learn more about the Hokage that led their village.

"Konoha was a village built under the initiative of the very First Hokage, a man who is thought to be by many to be the strongest shinobi in the history of Konoha. Interestingly enough, we even have a member of his clan amongst us in this class." As soon as Iruka finished his statement, all the children turned around to look at Sarada sitting at the back of the class, causing her to avert everyone's gaze in embarrassment. "The First Hokage fought countless battles and his conquest was unparalleled, because of which the entire shinobi world, be it enemy or ally, came to respect his strength. He used his powers to bring order within chaos by creating a village in which many previously warring clans could set aside their differences and work together to bring about a prosperous future. However, the First Hokage also had an unquenchable thirst for power and because of his aggressive nature he ended up creating a number of rivalries with opposing ninja villages, ones that have persisted even to this day."

Although the First Hokage was a person of unparalleled importance in Konoha's history, the end of his legacy was shrouded in mystery since he eventually disappeared from the village, never to be found again. This made him perhaps the most intriguing amongst all the other leaders to the children.

"Then we get to the Second Hokage, one who is in many ways completely opposite to the First. A pacifist at heart, he sought to undo much of the conflict that was established during the era of the previous Hokage and created as many alliances as possible. The Second was considered a prodigy since childhood as he is one of a handful of shinobi in the world who had mastery over all five of the basic elements. His exceptional knowledge of nearly every single ninja art used by the shinobi of Konoha earned him the title of "The Professor" as many generations of ninja benefited from his insight." Iruka finished describing the second before moving on to his successor. "Moving on we have the Third Hokage, the famous Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku, known as such because of his close friendship with the toads and the profound wisdom he gained by travelling across the entire world in his younger days. During his journeys the Third also wrote a very influential book titled "The Tales of the Utterly Gutsy Ninja", one that recounted the events of his journeys and told of a story through which the shinobi world could one day find true peace. You'll be studying sections of it as part of your curriculum later on."

Admittedly, most of the students grimaced at the mention of reading.

"Finally we have the newly inaugurated Fourth Hokage, the widely regarded Hero of Konoha, someone who you all should be very familiar with him. You should all aspire to be a shinobi like him because ever since he started off his ninja career, the Fourth Hokage has never once failed a mission. He has also singlehandedly completed more missions of every single rank than any other ninja in this village's history. The Fourth Hokage is a shining example of what a perfect shinobi should be and later on we'll study much more about his team formation and battle tactics so that you can learn how an outstanding shinobi should always operate. One final interesting fact to close out this conversation – each of the Hokage starting from the Second were students of one another. So the Third was a student of the Second and the Fourth was a student of the Third. Something coincidental, or maybe a trend. I guess we'll find out."

As Iruka finished his account of the Hokage, there was one particular student who raised her hand to ask a question.

"Yes Sarada?"

The young Uchiha gave her teacher a cynical look. "Sensei, I was wondering about something in regards to the position of the Fourth Hokage and I was hoping you could elaborate a little. There are rumours around the village that long ago there was once another man who was considered for the position of the Fourth Hokage, and that man was the current Fourth's fa-"

"Sarada, please stop!" Before she could finish her inquiry, Iruka interjected with a rather serious look on his face. "I do not know where you've learnt of this, but if you know this much you should also understand that the Third Hokage made it a taboo to speak of that man. I would urge you to please respect his wishes."

The atmosphere in the class suddenly turned grim as all the other students who did not know of this information became curious but were surprised to see their otherwise friendly sensei talk in such a heavy and overbearing tone. But just at that moment almost to alleviate the situation, the current Fourth Hokage flew in through the window and landed gracefully next to Iruka.

"Sorry I'm a bit late. The life of a Hokage is pretty hectic. But I'm here now and ready to roll." Naruto announced and jumped on to the teacher's podium, sitting down on top of it with his legs crossed. "So, what did you call me here for Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka looked from Naruto towards his class. "Today we were talking about the legacy of all the previous Hokage of the village and I invited the Fourth Hokage himself to visit so that he could impart upon all of you some wise words of how to be a perfect shinobi similar to his stature."

The kids now looked at Naruto with great anticipation especially since most of them knew him quite well given that they were children of Naruto's closest friends.

Naruto himself felt a bit shy by the flattering introduction he was given as well as the curious gazes of the children and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "I don't know about the whole perfect shinobi thing. I wouldn't consider myself to be perfect by any means, but that's okay. No one is perfect and that is why we ninja work as part of teams. By the end of your time in the academy all of you will be put into two man cells depending on individuals who complement each other the best. The only exception is the team of Ino-Shika-Chou, who are always put into a three man cell. But that's a clan related tradition than anything else."

Naruto's statement caused the whole class to turn around and gaze directly at the children of Ino, Shikamaru and Chouji. Shikadai in particular thought of the situation as being rather troublesome as he didn't want any unnecessary attention during his school life.

"In any case, whatever success I may be known for is just as much my teammate's as it is mine. She always covered my weaknesses as I did the same for her. Together we achieved some amazing feats and trusted each other to the point where we entrusted our lives to one another. She was my best friend and working alongside her I became stronger than I ever imagined I could be." Naruto described his relation to his teammate, the one person who was most precious to him. "That is why my suggestion to you all is to develop your friendships while you're here. One day you will leave this academy, but the bonds you create here will last forever. While your academics and ability to perform various techniques are imperative, what is most important for a ninja is teamwork. So make sure you get along with one another and learn to cooperate."

Naruto gave the kids some more inspirational talk before setting off to the hospital to check on the injured shinobi. After which he returned back to his office for more paperwork and a meeting with several others from the forensics department to talk about the scroll that was procured during the last mission. Eventually after the long day's work Naruto was finally able to head to the destination he was planning to visit ever since he arrived at Konoha earlier this morning – the Hyuga compound.

He casually entered the Hyuga clan house and walked through the courtyard where several Hyuga spotted him.

"Hokage-sama, glad to have you here. I take it that you wish to meet Lord Hiashi? If so would you like us to escort you?" One of the Hyuga asked in a very respectful manner.

"That won't be necessary. I'll find him myself, but thanks nonetheless for the offer." Naruto however rejected his offer kindly and was on his way to Hiashi's office.

As he walked through the compound under the evening moonlight, many memories of his childhood came rushing back to him. He remembered playing in the Hyuga's courtyard with Hinata and training in hand to hand combat with her in the dojo. He learned much from the Hyuga throughout his childhood and they were the closest thing to a family he ever had. As such he felt right at home every time he visited them.

Eventually after a bit of walking, Naruto reached the ever so familiar door to Hiashi's office and knocked on it. Instantly there was a response from inside for him to come in and as such he made his entrance, shutting the door behind him in the process. Two familiar faces looked genuinely happy to see him, ones Naruto considered his family – Hiashi and Hanabi.

"Naruto-niisama!" Hanabi exclaimed in excitement as soon as she saw her brother-in-law.

"So it would appear Hokage-sama has finally decided to grace the peasantry with his presence." Hiashi added, clearly not as impressed as his daughter by his son-in-law's visit, or lack thereof.

"Look, I can tell you're upset with me for not coming by in quite a while just from the tone of your voice. I've known you long enough to be able to discern that much. In my defence I've been a bit busy learning the ropes of my new position as the Hokage and only now am I getting used to it. So cut me some slack will you?" Naruto explained his case to Hiashi as he sat opposite to him on the kotatsu and placed a small pack of sweets in front of his in-laws. "Just to make up for it, here's a little treat to satiate your appetites. I know how much you Hyuga love your sweets."

"So now the Hokage wishes to bribe the leader for the Hyuga clan's support. How unsavoury." Hiashi replied somewhat sternly, even though his iron wall was already breaking with the presence of the pack of delectable sweets sitting in front of him.

"Damned if I do, damned if I don't. I just can't win with you old man." Naruto sighed in defeat as he looked over at Hanabi who was already digging through the sweets faster than a mouse through cheese. "Well at least someone here's being honest."

"H-Hanabi! Leave some for your father, will you?" Hiashi finally lost his composure and became flustered when his daughter looked at him for a second before going back to stuffing her face. As such he himself joined in to enjoy the absolute best sweets in Konoha.

"You guys never change." Naruto couldn't help but burst out laughing at the reaction of the Hyuga. It was almost like a scene from the past where every time he'd bring sweets to the Hyuga compound, Hiashi and his two daughters would start having an argument over who would get the lion's share. It was very unlike the image the Hyuga generally portrayed.

It didn't take long before the box of sweets was empty and the two had regained their composure once more.

"So, how's life as the Hokage?" Hanabi asked excitedly. "You've finally achieved your dream."

"It's a lot different than I imagined. I guess I'm just not the type who's used to sitting at the office all day, but I suppose I'm getting used to it."

"Certainly, knowing how rambunctious you were ever since childhood, it is somewhat hard to believe you being involved in an office job." Hanabi added. "But I'm sure it has its perks too right? The whole village admires you now."

"I suppose you're right. I did go to the academy today for a visit as the Hokage and the children were all looking up to me like I was some kind of a role model. It was almost a bit unbelievable given my past." Naruto replied, but there was still a small hint of sadness evident in his eyes that Hiashi picked up on.

"What's the matter Naruto? You don't look as excited as you should be. You can share any concerns with us. We're family are we not?"

Naruto nodded and looked down at the table with a very disheartened look. "Before I got there, I overheard one of the students make mention that there was once a different person who was chosen to take on the role of the Fourth Hokage. It was excruciating to hear Iruka-sensei bar the student from ever bringing up that person. That person...who was my father."

Both Hiashi and Hanabi understood the source of Naruto's pain and sympathised with him.

"The Third Hokage banned all mention of your father and wiped his records off the village's history to protect you Naruto. He did not mean any ill will. I'm sure you understand that better than anyone else given how close you are to the Third." Hiashi reconciled rather kindly.

"Of course I understand. But my dad's legacy is no longer recognised by the very people he sought to protect. It was his dream to become the Hokage, yet the fate that he met was that of betrayal. As I think back to the memories of my dad and what happened to him back then, it pains me inside, especially now as I've taken on the role that was supposed to be his to begin with."

"Naruto, I've known your father since before you were even born. If Minato was alive right now, he would be just as happy to see you assume the position of the Fourth Hokage as he would be if it was himself. He was proud of you since your birth and until the very end. That's why I don't think you should despair over the fact that you've taken over your father's position. Rather you should feel honoured to be able to carry on Minato's legacy, one that has long been forgotten by the people of this village. I can say that for certain that he would feel the same way."

Hiashi's words brought a smile to Naruto's face as he nodded in agreement. "You're right. Knowing my dad, he would have been proud to see me as the Hokage."

"I wish Nee-sama was here to share in this joyous time as well." Hanabi added, causing the atmosphere in the room to once again become heavy at her sister's mention. But she just couldn't help it.

"Hanabi…" Hiashi sighed. "As much as Hinata's loss was a blow to the clan, Naruto has suffered far more. So you should be more considerate before bringing her up in his presence. That being said, I do have to agree that despite how dire the situation may have been 8 years ago, Hinata should have trusted Naruto and remained withe him, in which case she could have witnessed him overcome all the odds and become the Hokage. I still think Hinata was in the wrong to leave as she did."

Naruto however shook his head in disagreement. "No, Hinata did the right thing. She did not simply think of herself or me, but for our child. Maybe she knew all along that even if I became the Hokage one day, there would still be those within the ninja world who would remain my enemy given my past and the struggle would never end."

"What does that mean?" Both Hiashi and Hanabi asked in very seriously once they heard the foreboding tone in Naruto's voice.

Thus Naruto explained about the traitors that plotted against him within Konoha.

"I can't believe it. I would have thought the village's hatred would have faded away after all these years, yet there are still those who seek to go against you." Hiashi genuinely sounded concerned of Naruto's current situation.

"Naruto-niisama, I want you to understand this. Many years ago my sister became your shield and came to your aid at the time when you needed it most. Even though she may no longer be by your side, this time the entire Hyuga clan will become your iron defence. We consider you one of us and we will do everything it takes to protect you. You are not alone any longer, whether my sister is here or not." Hanabi reassured Naruto.

However, for the first time there was a huge grin across Naruto's face. "You don't have to worry about that any longer because I'm about to tell you both a secret. After 8 long years, I am a man who has finally rediscovered his family."

Both father and daughter's eyes widened in disbelief as they could only reach one conclusion. "Could it be?!"

"That's right – I've found Hinata." Naruto stated out of the blue, causing the other two in the room to almost pass out in shock.

"You've actually found Nee-sama?!" Hanabi asked once more just to make sure she wasn't hearing things, to which Naruto nodded.

Hiashi now stood up from his seat given the severity of the situation. "Then the child…"

"Sit your ass down and calm down old man. Last thing I'd want is for you to have a heart attack. And yes, I've met him." Naruto cut in before his father-in-law even finished. "His name is Boruto."

"Boruto…" Both Hiashi and Hanabi said their newest family member's name in unison as they both had the same wish. "We must meet him."

"I understand your wish but the situation is a little complicated. Hinata doesn't yet know that I've come in contact with our son and for now I'd like to keep it that way. If she did find out, it's very likely that she'd bolt once again and I don't want to be on another goose chase for 8 more years. So I've been very careful not to reveal my identity to Boruto and the same needs to be the case for all other family members of his, especially you two. So yeah, just give me a bit of time and I'll find a good opportunity to allow for you two to meet him. After all, I want him to get to know his aunt and grandfather."

The Hyuga understood Naruto's concerns and came to an agreement.

"Does the child have the Byakugan?" Hiashi asked out of curiosity.

"From first glance, I would say no. But I'm sure the inheritance of such bloodline related traits is complicated."

Hiashi was deep in thought for a moment before looking back at Naruto. "The child has a mixture of both the Hyuga and Uzumaki's genetics, two very powerful clans. So he is certainly a very exotic case. However, given how strong Hinata's eyes were, if I had to place a bet I'd say that he has inherited the Byakugan. It may simply be that he has to awaken it in some fashion."

"I wouldn't be surprised if that was be the case. Hinata has kept Boruto's lineage a secret from him. It was only yesterday where I made him aware of his powers as a ninja, so he has literally no idea of any bloodline related traits he may have." Naruto explained to Hiashi.

"If Nee-sama won't teach him, as his Aunt I'll teach Boruto all the secrets of the Hyuga's arts." Hanabi suggested after hearing of her nephew's current state.

"I'd suggest you leave the responsibility of training the future of the Hyuga clan to the clan leader himself." Hiashi insisted instead.

"Otou-sama, you're getting quite old now. Don't you think you should concede such tasks to your successor at this point?" Hanabi replied and sparks began flying between father and daughter over who would have the privilege of training their newest family member.

"Okay, okay that's enough. You can both teach him. But for now we should think about when you should meet him and how we can bring out his latent Byakugan, if it exists."

Both Hiashi and Hanabi nodded at Naruto's suggestion and the three got busy planning out their next course of action. For them this was going to be a long night.

* * *

It seems the fact that Naruto is the 4th Hokage came as a bit of surprise. In fact the other 3 Hokage are different as well (apart from one who occupies a different number than what you know). Can you guess their identities? I suppose that depends on how well I described them. Once again props will go to all those who do. There is also the other point of Naruto's teammate, but that is something I'll be elaborate on more because it's important. A lot of what was mentioned in this chapter, including Minato, links back to what happened in the past during Naruto and Hinata's separation.

Also from last time, looking at most of your responses, it would appear the majority wants Boruto to awaken the Byakugan. I can say that you'll get your answer very soon.

 **Blackcurse11, Flameraven, Blacky2010:** I did mention that this story was AU, so I've messed around quite a bit with the ninja world history. Hopefully that makes things more surprising and interesting.

 **ZirconK, myzticmoon, rhodders:** No, Minato never became Hokage even though he was supposed to have been the 4th. Why he didn't will become clear later.

 **AUmaker, 61394:** There are no tailed beasts in this story.

 **romalovesfanfic:** Trust me, there'll be some flashbacks to explain some of this stuff. In fact there is one next chapter.

 **Hikari To Seimei:** Naruto actually was wearing in his father's coat last chapter. You'll see what I mean in a bit.

 **anne12fink:** I'm really glad your prediction came true and more people found the story. Also I love how you're torn between whether you want to wait for an update or want it instantly. I think I can understand how you feel and I'm glad you're liking the story despite being so torn lol.

 **Chewie Cookies:** Your comment made me think of this episode of Yugioh Abridged where someone goes: "In the words of M Night Shyamalan, what a twist!". Don't ask me why.

 **Gold Testament,** **Just an observer1, Lovelygeek7, orca285, kentut, Trainer1232, chandu-itachi:** Thanks for the kind words and support :)

That is all for today. Until next time, sayonara!


	7. Childhood Friends Part 1

**Childhood Friends Part 1**

It's been a little while since the last chapter, but I've been sick like a cute little animal for the past two weeks. But now that I'm finally better, we can get back into action!

* * *

It was now well past midnight given that Naruto spent quite a bit of time with his in-laws, talking to them about Boruto and Hinata. They were so engrossed in their conversation that time had flown by without him even noticing. Naruto was currently walking back home by himself. He could be there in less than a minute by taking to the rooftops if he wanted to, but Naruto decided to walk back home. This was really the first time he could take a moment and soak in everything that happened after he became Hokage. Ever since he took up that position life has been moving so fast, too fast perhaps, and with the discovery of his family it didn't look like things would slow down anytime soon.

There were barely any people outside at this time and the atmosphere in the village was quiet and tranquil. This was the village that Naruto was now in charge of. He was its leader and the people of Konoha had put their faith on him to take up a position of such great magnitude. That thought alone seemed almost unbelievable to Naruto sometimes, because it wasn't always this way. There was once a time when this village and its people were nothing but a source of great pain towards him. As Naruto walked past the academy and thought of the new students he met earlier who had just started out, he was taken back down memory lane to a day he could never forget.

 **Flashback: 20 Years Ago**

A 7 year old Naruto had just finished his first day at the academy. It was an experience unlike any other for him. There were so many students in his class, all from various clans and backgrounds. It was almost a bit overwhelming for little Naruto. He was a bit nervous but excited at the same time and couldn't wait to make new friends – people he would know the rest of his life. It was just a matter of finding the right people that would mesh well with him.

The lessons were over for today and most of the children had exited the class. Naruto himself was about to do the same when he suddenly bumped into a person coming from behind as he was getting up from his seat, causing her to drop the books she was holding in her hands.

"Sorry about that. I didn't look while getting up." Little Naruto apologised and picked up the books that had dropped to the floor, handing it over to the girl and taking the opportunity to also properly introduce himself to her. "I'm Naruto. Namikaze Naruto. Nice to meet you!"

"I-I'm the one who should be s-sorry. It was my fault for bumping into you. But thank you for helping me out." A young seven year old Hinata replied in a shy and meek tone. "I'm Hyuga Hinata. It's nice to meet you too."

Although Naruto had seen her before, this was the first time he got the chance to properly speak with her. He couldn't help but fell his heart skip a beat from how cute she was, but at the same time Naruto noticed that she had a very melancholic look in her eyes as though she had lost something very precious to her. It made him feel sorry for her to the point that he couldn't help but ask.

"Why do you look so sad?"

Hinata was a little taken aback by Naruto's observational skill, but quickly regained her composure. "It's nothing you have to worry about, but thank you for asking. I appreciate your c-concern."

Naruto knew there was something more going on that she didn't quite want to share and as such decided not to pester her. He just wanted her to cheer up.

"No matter what it is that is keeping you down, don't give up. It's a shame to see you look so sad because someone as cute as you would definitely look the best smiling." Naruto made an innocent and honest suggestion, one that caused Hinata to blush a very bright shade of red.

Even though she was going through a hard time, his words, as simple as they were, cheered her up a little bit. And for that Hinata was grateful.

"In any case, it was nice talking to you. Hope we can get along in the future. See ya!" The young Naruto waved goodbye to Hinata and took his leave from the class. Little did he know the chain of events he had just set into motion and what the future would hold for the two of them.

Naruto rushed to the gate of the academy just like every other kid in his class, who were all eager to share their new experiences with their parents. Naruto himself was no different and as he approached the gates to the building, sure enough his father was standing amongst the crowd of parents that had come to pick up their children. He dashed towards his father at breakneck speed and jumped into his open arms with great vigour.

"DAD! You came to pick me up!" Naruto said to his father, not able to hold in his happiness.

"I promised that I would didn't I? There's no way I could miss a monumental occasion such as my son's first day at the academy." Minato replied with an equal amount of elation in his voice as he hugged his son. "So, how was your first day?"

"It was AWESOME! I got to meet so many other students. The lessons were interesting. Iruka-sensei is a really nice person. I can't wait to become a ninja just like you!"

Naruto's overflowing excitement brought a smile to Minato's face as he picked up his son and placed him over his shoulders, something he did quite often when the two of them would go out together. "Sounds like you had a lot of fun. Tell me more on our way home."

Naruto nodded and as the two walked back towards their house, he spoke in great detail about the experiences he had on his first day at the academy while his father listened attentively.

"By the way, did you meet a Hyuga girl in your class by any chance?" Minato asked his son curiously.

"Oh yeah, I bumped into her just as I was coming out. She looked a little sad though."

Minato took on a slightly serious expression as he heard of his son's account of Hinata. "Yes, that would be because her mother passed away not too long ago."

Suddenly, Hinata's previous expression made sense to Naruto and he felt bad for her. Naruto didn't quite understand exactly what she was going through right now since he never got to meet his own mother, but he could only imagine how tough it must be to lose someone so close and dear.

"She's the daughter of Hiashi Hyuga, the current leader of the Hyuga clan and one of my closest friends. In fact the two us were part of the same team, trained by the Third Hokage. You may not remember but we used to visit the Hyuga a lot when you were younger. You and little Hinata would love playing with one another, so I was hoping you could be nice to her and maybe cheer her up a little bit. It would be great if the two of you were to become friends. I would love for the great relationship between our families to continue."

" _When you two were born, Hiashi and I approved of your engagement and marriage if the two of you agreed one day. But it's perhaps too early to think about such matters."_ Minato thought within his mind.

"Sure, I'll see what I can do. She seems like a nice person anyway." Naruto agreed to his father's request, not knowing the ulterior motives he had.

"That being said, I checked the list of people in your class earlier and it's filled with students of amazing background and potential. You have the heirs to the two strongest clans in the village, the Uchiha and the Hyuga, as well as the children of the Nara, Yamanaka and Akimichi clan leaders. On top of that there're also up and coming members of the Aburame and Inuzuka clans in there as well, not to mention other students with great potential. You've literally got an all-star cast in your class. The competition is cut out for you Naruto."

"They might be strong, but I'm the son of Konoha's future Hokage. That's why I won't be outdone by any of them." Naruto replied with an unbridled amount of confidence. He meant every bit of what he said and it made his father proud.

"That's the spirit! Nothing short of what I'd expect from my son." Minato nodded happily as the two enjoyed slowly strolling back to their home together.

The place they lived in wasn't anything extraordinary. It was a small two-floored house made for a family of three. There were two bedrooms on the top floor, one for Minato and one for Naruto, while on the ground floor there was a rather spacious living room joined together to a kitchen and a small study room for Minato's work. The backyard of the house was littered with toys that young Naruto played with every day.

As the two entered their home, Minato walked his son over to the dining table and instantly Naruto's eyes started glimmering from all the amazing looking food items that were on display. There was everything he loved eating and then some. It was a feast that made the young boy's mouth water uncontrollably.

"Looks like the whole day I spent today preparing this meal was worth it. Your eyes seem to be telling me so." Minato commented as he observed his son's mesmerised expression.

"Worth it? THIS IS AMAZING!" Naruto shouted back at the top of his lungs as he jumped from his father's shoulder on to a chair, ready to dig in. "What's up with the sudden feast though dad?"

"It's your first day at the academy, so I thought we should have a bit of a celebration for the occasion. But Naruto, what have I always taught you to do before eating food? Go wash your hands."

"Hai haaaaaaai!" Naruto shouted his agreement and dashed off to the kitchen sink to wash his hands. Once he got back he noticed that his father seemed to have put on a new article of clothing, one that Naruto had never seen before. It was a haori – a white overcoat that loosely fit around Minato's frame and made him look like some kind of a superhero in Naruto's eyes.

"This haori just got done earlier today ahead of my inauguration ceremony as the Fourth Hokage next week. What do you think? Does it look good?" Minato asked his son as he turned around to show the words "Fourth Hokage" etched on to the back of his haori along with a fiery design embroidered on the bottom edge.

"WOW! It looks amazing! I want to wear it too. Let me wear it." Naruto clamoured restlessly as he circled his father with the utmost enthusiasm.

"Okay okay, calm down. I'll let you wear it as well. Here…" As Minato took off his haori and was about to put it on around Naruto, a man with a mask covering half his face appeared in the room with a burst of smoke. He did not seem to be here for a friendly visit either.

The frantic look on his student's eyes already told Minato half the story, but he asked regardless. "What's the matter Kakashi? Is anything wrong?"

"Minato-sensei, we must talk urgently! Please, let's go to your study." Kakashi suggested in haste.

"Naruto, could you wait here for a bit? Dad and Kakashi need to talk." Minato explained to his son, to which he nodded obediently. There were times when Naruto knew his father was being serious and this was certainly one of those times.

As such both Minato and Kakashi disappeared into the study, shutting the door behind them and leaving Naruto by himself in the living room. The food got cold while Naruto waited around patiently. He sat at the dining table for quite a while before finally getting fed up of the wait and decided to tiptoe his way over to the door of the study to listen in on the conversation inside.

"The situation with Kumogakure has gotten worse than we envisioned. What was a simple encounter between two small groups of shinobi from both villages may turn into an all out war. For whatever reason Kumo seems unusually insistent on instigating a fight this time by deploying some of their best fighters and greatly increasing the numbers behind the assault. As such Lord Third has had no choice but to dispatch our own reinforcements in order to halt their push. However that can only last so long. With how things have been going, we will need to fight back in earnest with our best as well." Kakashi explained some of the details to his teacher. "What is worse for us is that Kumo has decided to hold a Konoha shinobi hostage during the commotion, and that individual happens to be Rin Nohara. As you can imagine, Obito has already rushed off in order to rescue her, not consulting anyone nor being assigned a mission to do so. The situation is truly getting out of hand and if we don't take action fast, Konoha will be in dire straits."

"Kakashi, go tell Jiraiya-sensei that the two of us will be heading out to the battlefield ourselves. If matters truly have gotten to the point where Konoha is in legitimate threat of losing to Kumogakure, then we will need our best on the field as well. While we buy Konoha time, it will allow sensei to think of a counter plan and act accordingly. That will be our goal."

"THERE'S NO WAY YOU CAN DO THAT!" Kakashi's voice expressed genuine disbelief at Minato's suggestion. "You are to be inaugurated as the Fourth Hokage in a week's time. There is no way an individual such as yourself can head to the battlefield at moment's notice. You're a man of unparalleled importance to Konoha sensei!"

"The whole reason for me becoming Hokage is so that I may be able to protect this village. The people have entrusted me with that duty. Without Konoha there won't be any purpose to the Hokage. That is why I must fight for this village and its people at all costs, because that is my ninja way. Besides, what kind of a teacher would I be if I didn't come to the aid of one of my students at a time of his need?" Minato asked Kakashi a rhetorical question in regards to Obito, one that resonated greatly with the masked ninja. "We have no time to waste Kakashi. Go now and relay my message to Jiraiya-sensei. I know he won't be pleased, but given the situation, it is the only way. Let us make haste."

Taking his teacher's order to heart, Kakashi disappeared with a burst of smoke just as he had arrived. This gave Minato the opportunity to come out of the study and confront his son. Given the commotion, young Naruto was a bit confused at what was going on.

However, his father kneeled down and patted him on the head. "I'm sorry Naruto but it would appear that your dad has to go on a very important mission. It's an emergency."

Instantly Naruto's face was drained of all its life. "But why now? You're going to become the Hokage soon right? The Hokage don't have to go on missions. You can stay at the village all the time just like the Third."

"That's not true Naruto. Being the Hokage means that I'm not only responsible for leading the shinobi of this village, but also protecting them. I love this village with all my heart just as I love you, my one and only son. That is why I will defend this village with all I have. I know it's difficult, but please try and understand the situation your father is in."

"But I wanted for us to eat the food you made together. I wanted us to spend more time together. I thought that would be possible once you became Hokage." Naruto expressed his simple yet sincerest wishes.

"I wanted to do so as well Naruto. I'm sorry. But to make it up to you, here's something I'll entrust you with." Minato handed Naruto the Fourth Hokage's haori that he had worn just earlier. "Keep it safe for me until I get back okay?"

Naruto accepted the article of clothing and held on to it as tightly as possible. "I'll take care of this with everything I have, so go be a hero like always dad!"

Given his son's encouraging words, Minato couldn't help but smile wholeheartedly as he gave Naruto a thumbs up. "Leave it to me!"

Thus with that final exchange of words, Minato packed up his belongings and got changed into his ninja gear before embarking on his mission.

Unfortunately, little did Naruto know back then that this would be the final time he would ever speak with his father.

 **A few weeks later…**

Naruto was devastated. Life was no longer what it used to be. How could this be true? He had lost the last shred of family he had left in the world. Now he was all alone. And there was nothing but emptiness that he felt inside. He wanted so desperately for all of this to be fake, for all of it to be just a bad dream, for him to wake up and find his father with him once again. But with each passing day the nightmare refused to end and reality kept rearing its ugly head until eventually Naruto had to come to terms with the fact that his father was indeed dead. However, that was only just the beginning. Minato, who was once a man in line to become the Fourth Hokage was now someone considered to be one of the worst traitors in the village's history.

The story went as such – When the battle between Konohagakure and Kumogakure heated up to its boiling point, Minato arrived on the battlefield. To the Konoha shinobi he was a form of salvation, one of the very best the village had to offer who would turn the very tide of battle in their favour. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, Minato along with his student Obito turned on their fellow Konoha shinobi, allowing Kumo's assault to advance and bring Konoha's forces down to its knees. It was a violent betrayal, one that had almost led to the destruction of the Leaf itself. It was only through the entire Uchiha clan's intervention and the combined efforts of Konoha's shinobi force on the battlefield that the team of Minato and Obito were finally brought to their end and Kumogakure's forces were stopped in their tracks. Finally, it was the Hyuga clan led by Hiashi himself that pushed back the enemy ninja with an exceptional show of force and brought an eventual end to the battle between the two villages. Incidentally, this was also the battle during which Kumogakure gained its fanatic desire for the Byakugan after witnessing its extraordinary feats first hand in battle, something that would persist far into the future.

It had been a few weeks since all of that happened and Naruto was currently walking home through the shopping district after school. However, unlike before he could now feel the piercing gazes of the villagers on his back even when he wasn't directly making eye contact with them. These were eyes of people who clearly did not want him around. They were hurtful to say the least.

"Look, it's the son of that man." One of the villagers whispered to another as Naruto passed by.

"You mean the traitorous Hokage, the one who almost led to the destruction of our village." The other replied.

"We got lucky that man got taken out before he ever got to become Hokage, or who knows what he would have done to us from the inside." Another villager joined in.

"That kid is the traitor's child. I bet he's the same. You know what they say right, like father like son."

"I wish he would disappear just like his father. I can't stand the sight of him walking around the village!"

The words of the villagers got louder and louder as they made little effort in hiding them from Naruto. They were too much for one child to endure by himself. Eventually it got to the point where he could no longer take it anymore. Just as the village hated him, Naruto hated them back for calling his father a traitor, the one who he had always known to have loved the village with all his heart.

"You're all wrong. YOU'RE ALL WRONG! MY DAD WAS NOT A TRAITOR! HE LOVED THIS VILLAGE MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE!" Naruto shouted defiantly at all the villagers surrounding him before running off from the area as fast as he could.

Naruto dashed through the streets and did not look back. He didn't want to hear what the villagers had to say. He just wanted to defend his father's honour. As such he ran without stopping until eventually he reached his house. However, even here his torment would not come to an end. The young boy was left speechless at what he saw. The entire front wall of his house had been spray painted with the words "TRAITOR", "SCUM", "TRASH", "DISAPPEAR" for the whole world to see. Naruto dropped to his knees in shock as his heart sunk almost to the bottom of his stomach at the sight. It was also during this moment that three kids a few years older than him came out from hiding and blindsided and punched Naruto to the ground. They then started to kick and pummel him without any remorse.

"This is what you get for being the son of a traitor scum!" The leader of the kids shouted at the Uzumaki boy. "You're no better than your piece of trash father. This is what you get for always defending him."

Despite taking a relentless beating, Naruto remained steadfast in his one assertion. "My dad…was not a traitor."

And because of that reply, the beating he was taking got even worse. Naruto could fight back, but the emotional damage he had taken thus far from the entire village made the physical pain pale in comparison. Despite his defiance, he was only just a 7 year old child. His will was nearly at a breaking point. There was no one left to support him. He could no longer bring himself to fight. Giving up felt like it would be so much easier. Naruto just wanted with all his heart for the pain to come to an end.

In that dire moment when all hope seemed lost, someone arrived at the scene as though to answer his heart's pleas.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" The person shouted at the three kids beating up on Naruto, causing them to momentarily stop their assault and turn around to look at the newcomer.

Naruto's body was bruised and in pain, but he barely managed to lift his head up to recognise his classmate standing a little distance away, staring down at his attackers. It was none other than the Hyuga's princess that had just come to his rescue.

"What do you want?" The leader of the kids asked Hinata, scowling at her sight. "You're not going to go against us are you?"

"You've done enough. It doesn't matter what his father may have done, but he is not to blame for any of it. Therefore, leave him alone!" Hinata warned the three in an unusually brave manner.

However, her warning fell to deaf ears and only served to agitate the three even further.

"Just because you're the Hyuga's princess doesn't mean you can go ordering everyone around." One of the kids replied in a very threatening tone. "If you're going to support this kid, then you deserve no remorse either."

The leader of the three now got ready to attack even Hinata. "I think it's about time someone taught you the consequences for disrespecting your elders. I'LL TEACH YOU YOUR PLACE!"

The older boy charged at Hinata and got ready to punch her. However, the Hyuga's princess activated her Byakugan and instantly raised one of her palms forward, taking one of her clan's signature stances. With one flick of her wrist, she effortlessly pushed away the fist the boy threw her way, leaving him completely off guard and off balance.

"You're wide open." Hinata stated in a stoic tone as she charged her own palm back and delivered a powerful blow to his midsection that sent him flying back into his two friends and instantly knocked him out cold.

The other two kids barely managed to get their bearings back when they witnessed the sight of an angry Hinata with her activated eyes walking towards them one step at a time, and it scared them out of their minds, especially after witnessing what she did to their friend so easily.

"SHE'S A MONSTER! RUUUUN!" The two kids shouted in fear as they picked up their friend's limp body and escaped the scene as quickly as possible.

Once they were completely out of her extended field of view, Hinata deactivated her Byakugan and kneeled down next to Naruto with her usual gentle expression.

"A-Are you okay?" She asked him with a great amount of concern. "They shouldn't bother you any more hopefully."

"What does it matter if I'm okay or not? Everyone in the village thinks my dad is a traitor. No one believes me anymore no matter what I have to say." Naruto replied in a truly broken tone.

"I believe in you. If you're saying that your father wasn't a traitor then that has to be the truth." Hinata responded as she helped Naruto back up to a sitting position.

Her response came as a shock to the boy as he did not expect it whatsoever. After so long there was one person who actually believed his word.

"Really? You actually believe me?" He questioned with a look of hope. "But why, when the whole village thinks I'm a liar? Why would you trust my word when everyone is against me?"

"Because you knew your father better than everyone else in the village. It's the same for me. I know my own father better than everyone. I'm closer to him than anyone else. Therefore, as his son if you're saying that your father was not a traitor, then there is no reason for me to believe that wasn't true. I can see it in your eyes as well that you're speaking the truth from the heart."

Naruto was left nearly speechless by her kind words. To think that a person's words could be so pure and kind. It reminded him of his father. Right now the gratefulness he felt towards Hinata could not be described with words. Just to have someone believe and support him caused his eyes to water.

"You really…believe me?" He asked once more just to be sure, stumbling over his own words.

"Of course." Hinata answered with one of her heartfelt smiles, one that Naruto would remember for the rest of his life. "I understand how it feels to lose one's parent. I lost my mother not too long ago. It leaves a hole in your heart that cannot simply be filled. The emptiness hurts so much that words can't describe it. I understand all of it and that is why I can tell how painful it must be to have the entire village say such mean things about your father. Even though we only talked for a bit during our first day at the academy, I was thankful for your kind words of support back then. I've wanted to do the same for some time now ever since the incident with your father, but never managed to get up the courage to do so. Now that I have however, I'd like to say that I'm truly sorry for your loss. I know there isn't much I can say that'll make the situation better, but I just want you to know that you're not alone."

Her words meant more to him than he could ever hope to express. Just knowing that there was someone out there that sympathised with him and understood him gave Naruto a sense of relief that he just couldn't describe. As such he finally broke down. The hardened exterior that he had put up in order to defend his father's honour all this time came crumbling down as he grasped Hinata in one of the tightest hugs and started crying louder than he ever had before in his life. Naruto could finally let out his true feelings, one that was of a little boy that had just lost his most beloved family member.

Hinata was at first shocked by Naruto's sudden action, but she soon came to the realisation that Naruto probably didn't have anyone to truly share with him in his sorrow. He had no family left after all and the village treated him in the worst possible way. All that pain and suffering had only built up within him and this was finally the outlet for it all. As such Hinata waited patiently for him to cry to his heart's content while holding him back ever so gently.

After a while once Naruto had regained control of himself, he let go off Hinata so as to increase the gap between them and felt a little flustered.

"F-Feeling a little better?" Hinata asked with a tinge of red on her cheeks.

"Y-Yes…sorry you had to witness that." Naruto replied, just as embarrassed.

"It's okay. When I lost my mother I cried my eyes out as well like a little girl. Well, I suppose I am a little girl." Hinata came to the realisation, causing both her and Naruto to giggle together at the same time. "In any case, I think we should clean up your house for now."

Naruto nodded and the two worked together in bringing out buckets of water from within the house along with mops in order to clean up the spray paint that was used to vandalise Naruto's house. After a bit of combined effort, the place looked as good as new. Once they had sorted everything out, the two stood outside the house in order to continue on with the small talk that they started while working together.

"Say Hinata, I was wondering what brought you here today? Isn't the Hyuga compound on the other side of the village?"

"That is true but I like to visit my mother's grave every so often after classes, which happens to be on the way to here. I was merely passing by after one such visit today when I noticed those bullies picking on you and finally managed to come to your aid." Hinata explained in her usual shy tone.

"I see…thank you." Naruto expressed his sincerest of gratitude and at the same time his stomach gave a rather loud growl, embarrassing Naruto in front of the girl he had come to admire. "Guess I didn't realise how hungry I was. I kind of forgot to buy food on my way back earlier in the midst of the commotion. How silly of me."

Hinata could see that Naruto was clearly not telling her the full story. Given how the villagers treated him, most stores probably didn't want to serve him after the incident with his father became public knowledge. As such she knew her next course of action.

"N-Naruto-kun, would you like to join me for lunch with my family?" She suggested with the utmost sincerity.

Her offer surprised Naruto as it came out of the blue. "Is it really okay for me to join you? Wouldn't your father be upset?"

Hinata shook her head sideways as strongly as she could. "That's not true at all. My father is the one who has been encouraging me to talk to you and share with you our condolences ever since the incident that happened. He has wanted to meet you for some time now and has asked me to invite you on multiple occasions. I-It's just that I haven't been able to talk to you properly. So please, do join us for lunch. We would love to have you as our guest."

Given her kind insistence, Naruto just couldn't bring himself to reject her. He had no reason to either. She was one of few people that understood him right now. Even though he disliked most of the villagers, she was someone he would gladly be around.

As such, Naruto gave Hinata a nod and the two set off together towards the Hyuga compound. It was the beginning of a childhood friendship that would one day become a relationship of husband and wife.

* * *

A flashback chapter this time around and it'll be the same next chapter as well. I think it's necessary to delve a little bit into the backstory of Naruto and Hinata to understand their present situation. Hope you found their beginnings and the finer differences from canon interesting.

From last time, a lot of you guessed the identities of the Hokage correctly as Madara, Hiruzen and Jiraiya: **krchris56, Gold Testament, Blacky2010, Anonymous0786, Guest 8, pervyysage, Trainer1232, Tomo, 61394, Hikari To Seimei, ZirconK, WhightGriger, belnonm**. As I've mentioned before, the new order of the Hokage is important to the story, especially now that you know what happened to Minato. In regards to Minato, I've intentionally kept his story a bit vague for now as I'll elaborate more on it later. For now I'd love to know what you think happened to him. Did he really betray Konoha? If not what actually happened?

Also as **romalovesfanfic, pervyysage, Trainer1232, Tomo, ZirconK, Jane, NaruHinaRyu** mentioned, Hinata is indeed Naruto's teammate and with this chapter as well as the next, you'll see how that developed.

I must also apologise to everyone for lying. I said earlier that Naruto didn't cheat on Hinata, but as **Blacky2010** pointed out, he did actually cheat on her last chapter...with his pillow. And it wasn't even worth it because the pillow wasn't a good kisser. In Naruto's defense though he was asleep and dreaming of Hinata during the moment, so hopefully that makes it a little less painful? I'M SORRY! I've failed NaruHina! PLEASE FORGIVE ME EVERYONE!

 **crazypaul00:** Yes, eventually Sasuke will be in the story, and he'll play an important role with my current plans.

 **Jane:** I don't really have any plans for Neji. I might throw him in for a cameo at some point or if I think up any need for him in the story, but as far as the Hyuga goes Hiashi and Hanabi are the main focus.

 **SilverFang555:** The taboo person that Iruka spoke of in the last chapter was Minato, and you can see why in this chapter. And yes, Sarada is the child of Sakura and Sasuke, although at this point in time she doesn't really have any Hokage related ambitions.

 **Hikari To Seimei:** From your comment I kind of imagined Hiashi and Hanabi hiding out in the corner of a dark street like some shady characters and as Boruto is walking by they grab him and make a run for it lol. Okay, it definitely won't happen that way. They'll meet in a more normal way.

 **Guest 8:** Whoa, whoa, whoa man. There were a lot of guesses in there but one of them got real close to unraveling the overall plot of the story. I won't say which one though lol.

 **NaruHinaRyu:** Wow, I read your review right as I was about halfway done with this chapter and I was thinking whether you read my mind or not. You called it as it is.

Alright, that will be it for this chapter. Let me know your thoughts as it's always very helpful and a lot of fun for me to read them. Until next time, be well and take care :)


	8. Childhood Friends Part 2

**Childhood Friends Part 2**

* * *

Naruto and Hinata had just reached the Hyuga compound and were currently walking through the courtyard. Although Naruto had followed Hinata to her house on her behest, currently he was feeling a little nervous, especially with the questioning stares the other Hyuga were giving him. Even though they weren't being rude as the other villagers, it was clear that they weren't expecting to see him at their house either.

"Is it really okay for me to be here?" Naruto asked his classmate almost in a whisper quiet tone so that only she could hear him.

"Of course!" She replied enthusiastically. "I can't wait for you to meet my family."

Naruto felt a little bit less out of place after hearing her response. She seemed genuinely keen on having him over for lunch and he decided to follow along for now. After all, the worst thing that could happen was that he would get kicked out, and although it wasn't something he enjoyed, it was a scenario that he had gotten used to over the past few weeks, as sad as it was.

After a bit more walking, the two reached the door to Hiashi's office. Hinata knocked a few times to let her presence be known and was soon called in to enter. Once the two walked into the rather spacious and traditionally decorated room, Naruto saw Hinata's father sitting at a kotatsu with a small girl on his lap, which he assumed was Hinata's sister. He remembered vaguely on seeing Hiashi in some occasions before, but it was the first time he was seeing Hanabi.

"Otou-sama, I've brought Naruto-kun as you so wished." Hinata stated to her father in a courteous but casual manner.

"Ah yes, I've been expecting you for quite some time now. Please do take a seat and make yourself comfortable." Hiashi said in a very friendly tone to Naruto, one that almost went against his generally stern appearance. At the same time, the very young girl sitting on his lap waved at Naruto with a smile, clearly pleased to meet him as he did the same while taking a seat opposite to them on the kotatsu next to Hinata. Hanabi seemed a lot more open and direct about her emotions than her sister.

"I'm N-Nami…I mean Uzumaki Naruto. P-Pleased to make your acquaintance." Naruto introduced himself nervously. The way in which the villagers treated him made him very wary of every person he met.

" _I see. So his name change from Namikaze to Uzumaki as made by the Third Hokage has already come into effect."_ Hiashi thought inwardly before giving Naruto a warm look. "Naruto, you don't have to force on such politeness. I have heard much of you from your father. He always spoke very fondly of his son and described you to have taken more after your mother in terms of personality – the energetic and somewhat raucous type. Therefore feel free to be yourself. We are but your allies."

Naruto was surprised at Hiashi's mention of his father and not in a negative light either. "Is it really okay for you to talk about my dad? I thought speaking of him was…banned."

Hiashi could sense the pain in the boy's voice at that moment and wanted to provide him with some solace. "That may be true in public, but here within the Hyuga clan I decide the rules and to me Minato is but one of the greatest shinobi this village has ever had."

"Does that mean you don't think that my dad was a traitor?"

"Of course not. As my long time friend, a teammate to whom I once entrusted my very life, and a man who was chosen to become the Hokage, I firmly believe that Minato would never betray this village. Of that I am certain." Hiashi gave an unflinching reply, one that shook Naruto to his very core. To think that there were still people in this village who thought so highly of his father, his heart could finally find some peace. It almost made his eyes water.

Seeing her father's words have such an emotional effect on Naruto made Hinata happy inside. No innocent child deserved to be treated with such hatred as was the case for him. She realised that the shinobi world could be a very vile and cut throat place, but at the very least her family could be there for Naruto at a time of his great loss and pain. As such she gently placed her arm on his shoulder in order to show her support.

"Thank you…it's…it's great to know that dad…isn't hated by every single person in the village, that there is someone out there who still believes in him. I know that he loved this village and was a true Hokage at heart, but I'm glad that someone like you…someone who is so important to this village thinks so too." Naruto replied wholeheartedly, feeling truly justified for believing in his father's innocence for all this time in the face of such adversity and hatred from the villagers.

"There is no need for you to thank me. It's the least I can do for my old friend. And even though he may no longer be here, you, his one and only son are. Therefore feel free to share your concerns with me. As I've said earlier, being Minato's son, I consider you nothing short of family. I hope you will come to do the same one day." Hiashi made an earnest request, to which Naruto nodded ever so timidly. He could however feel the sincerity in the Hyuga's voice. "In any case, let us have lunch for now. I'm sure both you and Hinata are starving by now having returned from the academy."

Given Hiashi's order, lunch was served within his office so as to allow for the family to eat and get to know Naruto better without him feeling too nervous in the presence of the other members of the clan. It would take him a little bit to get used to being treated normally once more and not be abused by the villagers at every opportunity. So to light lighten up the mood Hiashi decided to bring up a few good memories their families shared while they ate.

"I do not know if you are aware Naruto, but your father and I used to visit each other a lot after you and Hinata were born. In fact the two of you used to really enjoy playing together all the time."

"I think dad mentioned something like that a while back, but I don't remember any of it though."

Hinata was a little shy at the mention of the amiable relationship she and Naruto shared as babies, but she was curious nonetheless. "I-Is that really true? That Naruto-kun and I were toddler friends?"

"Toddler friends? I think it would be more accurate to describe the two of you as infant friends." Hiashi replied with a smile across his face as he recalled a memory of the past to share with the children.

 **Flashback (within flashback): When Naruto and Hinata were around 6-8 months of age**

The doorbell at the Namikaze household rang quite loudly, prompting Minato to hurry to the entrance and open the gate in order to welcome the ones he was expecting for some time now.

"Took you long enough. I've been waiting for quite some time now." Minato complained to his old friend in a slightly frustrated tone, who was carrying his baby daughter.

"I do apologise. You know how finicky children can be. It just took longer to prepare Hinata than I anticipated. My wife is the one who normally takes care of such matters, but she's a little busy with a few other things, so I'm the one in charge."

Minato extended his index finger towards baby Hinata and she curiously grabbed on to it. He then started to move his hand around along with Hinata's, which caused her to assume a happy expression.

"All is forgiven because Hinata-chan is an angel." Minato answered with a smile as well. "In any case, come on in. I'm sure Naruto will be really happy to see her."

The two walked into the living room which was littered with toys as far as the eyes could see, almost as though a storm had passed through. And in the midst of that chaos, baby Naruto was playing around without a care in the world.

"I'm really sorry about the mess. Ever since Naruto learned how to crawl, the house hasn't been the same. We try to set him up a nice corner with his toys to play in but he refuses to sit still. The whole living room has turned into his playground"

"It is to be expected, given who his mother is." Hiashi replied as a matter of fact, to which Minato nodded wholeheartedly.

During this time Naruto noticed the presence of the newcomers and turned around to see who they were. Instantly his eyes opened wide and there was a huge grin across his face as he extended both arms towards the other baby in the room and shouted, "TAAAAAAAAAA!"

Almost on cue, Hinata pointed her index finger towards Naruto with great enthusiasm and tried to tear away from her father to get to him, repeating the words "TO! TO! TO!" in an effort to communicate her desire.

Both Naruto and Hinata were too young to speak properly, but given their close friendship the two had learned to refer to each other by the last syllables of their names, "TO" for Naruto and "TA" for Hinata.

"Okay, okay, calm down. You can play with Naruto all you like in a second." Hiashi did his best to pacify his restless daughter, who otherwise was normally a very reserved child.

As soon as he dropped her next to Naruto, she extended her hand towards him and waved it around as a form of saying hello. However when Naruto saw the hand in front of his face, he instantly munched down on it and started to suck her fingers. His sudden action shocked everyone, but perhaps even more shockingly, when Hinata saw Naruto's golden blonde hair in front of her face, she also chomped on to a lock of his hair. Neither of them had grown much in terms of teeth, so them taking a bite out of one another was pretty painless and was all in good infantile fun.

The exchange caused both Minato and Hiashi to burst out into laughter before they did their part in stopping their children from biting one another, even if it was relatively harmless. Despite that, Naruto and Hinata soon transitioned over to hugging one another while rolling around on the floor and having a giggling fit. Their parents couldn't help but feel a sense of joy seeing their children have so much fun together.

"I haven't seen Kushina-san around yet today. Normally she's always first to greet everyone." Hiashi enquired curiously.

"Oh yeah, Kushina's gone out today to do some shopping. Normally she's the one who's always looking after Naruto, so I told her to go out as a change of pace as I look after him for the whole of today. As you can see…it hasn't been going well." Minato sighed as he looked around the room and the mess that it was in.

"Don't worry about it too much. Tending after children can be a rather difficult task as I've learned over the past couple of months. You can't take your eyes off of them for even a second."

"You could say that again. It's especially true with Naruto."

While they exchanged some small banter, Hiashi decided to take a more serious turn. "Minato, I don't think I ever quite said this properly, but I'm sorry for quitting the team. Jiraiya-sensei got picked to become the Hokage as well. I feel bad for the team disbanding and leaving you alone as the only one from our team on the active roster."

Minato however shook his head in disagreement. "There's nothing for you to be sorry about. You had to take over the duties as the clan leader eventually. We both knew that. And I'm glad Jiraiya-sensei became the Hokage. The village will benefit with a man of his calibre and wisdom at the helm. Sure it's a bit sad to see our once great team break up, but everyone has gone on to pursue even greater things. As for me, I'm getting two students of my own very soon – Obito Uchiha and Kakashi Hatake. They're both very promising, so I look forward to creating a team that can hopefully rival ours one day."

Hiashi nodded and felt relieved of the burdens he carried so far. "Thank you for understanding Minato. I firmly believe that one day you will achieve your dream and succeed Jiraiya-sensei as the Fourth Hokage. When that day arrives, I will be there with the rest my clan to stand alongside you and take this village to even greater heights."

The two old friends came to a mutual agreement as they watched over their children playing with one another.

 **Flashback End**

As Hiashi finished recalling his story, he couldn't help but feel a deep regret well up inside him. "I'm sorry Naruto for not being able to keep the promise I made to your father. By the time me and the rest of the Hyuga arrived on the battlefield, it was already too late. Your father was...no longer. I failed him and the only thing left for me to do is to apologise to you, his one and only successor. I won't make the same mistake again. When it comes to you Naruto, rest assured that I and the rest of my clan will stand behind you just as I promised your father. And this time, I won't fail."

Naruto shook his head side to side quite strongly to show his disagreement. "You didn't fail dad at all. In fact you've honoured him more than anyone else. You remained a best friend to him until the very end and even after he is gone. I'm sure dad would be truly happy right now if he were here."

"Even though it is painful, I'm glad you feel that way. As you can see, not only were Minato and I long time teammates, you and Hinata also became great friends soon after you were born. I hope that relationship can continue…" Hiashi stated to both Naruto and his daughter before the adding the next part within his mind. _"…and develop in something even greater eventually."_

It was from this day forward that Naruto became deeply involved with the Hyuga clan. Within them he had found a new family in Hinata, Hiashi and Hanabi. Years passed by as he grew up alongside Hinata, becoming great friends while they attended the academy, Hiashi acting as both of their father figure. It was also during this time that he got to learn a lot more about Hinata and her clan as a whole. He found out that Hinata was one of the most gifted Hyuga in her clan's history, so much so that her clan referred to her as the "Prodigy among Prodigies" and believed in her to be the future of their clan. She did not simply live up to her clan's expectations, but surpassed them at all times. By training alongside her and under the guidance of both Hiashi and Jiraiya from time to time, Naruto himself grew incredibly strong, surpassing his own limitations.

6 years passed by almost in the blink of an eye as it was currently the day of Naruto and Hinata's graduation. Hiashi and Hanabi were standing amidst the crowd of parents at the entrance of the academy in anticipation of the results the two would bring. Sure enough, when the stream of graduates flowed out from within the examination rooms, it was Naruto and Hinata who came rushing out towards Hiashi and Hanabi before everyone else, waving their newly acquired Konoha headbands as proof of their successful graduation.

"You did it, Nii-sama, Nee-sama! I'm so glad!" Hanabi was the first to congratulate the two.

"Was there ever any doubt that either one of them would not graduate?" Hiashi took on a much more unsurprised tone even though he was truly happy inside.

"Hehe, you got that right old man." Naruto puffed his chest up proudly in response.

"In all honesty though, congratulations. You've both made me proud." Hiashi added a little bit more. "We should probably exit the academy given how congested it is right now, and it'll only get worse shortly. We'll talk on the way. How about we go to the Ichiraku's ramen shop that Naruto speaks so highly of? Although I'm normally against such pedestrian food, we can make an exception given the occasion."

Naruto was really shocked to hear Hiashi's proposition. "Is it really okay? I'm sure you'd like to go somewhere better. I wouldn't want to ruin the occasion."

"If Hinata is fine with it, I don't see the issue."

Naruto looked over to Hinata and sure enough she seemed excited. "I would love to celebrate our graduation at Ichikaru's ramen shop Naruto-kun."

Thus it was set. The family walked together towards the famous ramen shop and on their way discussed more about their results. Naruto and Hinata handed Hiashi their report cards which gave a more detailed breakdown of the scores they achieved. It appeared that they both scored an overall 90% in their exams, a truly impressive mark given how few people passed the graduation exams each year, and how much fewer scored anywhere near the realm of marks those two scored.

Even Hiashi was impressed. "90% marks? I must say, you two didn't simply pass your exams, you aced them with flying colours. As to be expected."

An even closer look at the mark breakdown showed that Naruto scored 100% in his ninjutsu exam, 95% in his taijutsu exam and 75% in his genjutsu exam. Hinata on the other hand scored 100% in taijutsu, 95% in ninjutsu and 75% in genjutsu. It was clear that Naruto's specialty was ninjutsu while Hinata's specialty was taijutsu, and they both shared a similar weakness in genjutsu.

"I heard that during a taijutsu exam earlier in the day, one of the Chuunin examiners that was sparring with the students got knocked out. So the exams had to be stopped temporarily before they found a replacement to fight the students. I bet that was you wasn't it Hinata?" Naruto asked curiously.

Hinata however coiled up in embarrassment. "I-It wasn't intentional. During the heat of the sparring session I just saw an opening in his defence and went for it with full force. Before even realising the examiner had been knocked out and I was left feeling terrible for him. Luckily the markers who were watching ended my session and later when I got my results I found out that they gave me full marks."

"I guess it was worth it then to knock him out huh?" Naruto teased Hinata, causing her to coil up even more.

"I also heard that during the ninjutsu exam when we're instructed to create a few clones of ourselves, there was one student who filled the entire classroom with shadow clones, which left the examiners in shock. No one expected an academy student to be able to pull off such a high level technique such as the shadow clone. Instantly I knew it had to be you Naruto-kun. Only you are good enough in our entire class to be able to pull off such a feat. Not to mention the shadow clone is one of your favourite techniques."

"I guess the examiners were so impressed that they gave me a 100% in ninjutsu." Naruto replied while rubbing the back of his head. "It really sucks though that we did so good in our ninjutsu and taijutsu exams but our overall marks got brought down by the genjutsu exam."

"I agree. It is a shame." Hinata concurred in a slightly defeated tone. "I guess neither of us are very good at creating or dealing with genjutsu."

While Naruto and Hinata discussed the results, Hiashi still looked closely at the report cards and smiled inwardly at the results. They took him back to the days of old during his own graduation. The names of on Naruto and Hinata's report cards could be changed with Minato and Hiashi right now and they would look identical to their parents' report cards from decades ago. Minato and Hiashi had the same specialties in ninjutsu and taijutsu respectively, and they also shared the same weakness in genjutsu as their children.

" _I would appear that our children are walking down the same path that we once tread Minato."_ Hiashi whispered to his lost friend within his mind but he was quickly broken out of his thoughts by his daughter's enquiry.

"I'm a bit worried about the team formations and who I'm going to be paired with." Hinata said in a very concerned tone. "I can't imagine myself in a team with anyone other than Naruto-kun. Is there any way to ensure that?"

"Yeah, I want to be in the same team as Hinata. Some of our classmates are cool and all but none of them compare to Hinata." Naruto added.

"Don't worry about it for now. I have something in mind in regards to that matter." Hiashi reassured the two as they all arrived at Ichiraku and got ready to enjoy a hefty serving of ramen.

Several days passed by and it was now the final day at the academy for Naruto and Hinata. All the other graduates had also assembled in their class to learn who their teammate and instructor would be.

Iruka stood before his class for one last time and got ready to make the announcements. "First of all I would like to congratulate you all one more time for successfully passing your exams and graduating from the academy. But as I've taught you over the years, as crucial as it is for you to be great shinobi individually, the strength of the team in which you'll work in is even more important. The Hokage has hand selected the teams from amongst you and assigned every team a Jounin instructor. As I announce your names, please go to the classroom I state as well and wait there for your instructor to come and meet you. So without further ado, here are the teams and your instructors…"

Naruto and Hinata both took a deep breath given that the moment of truth was upon them. Would they be in the same team? That was the one question that plagued their minds.

Iruka cleared his throat and begun. "First, the special 3 man team of Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka and Chouji Akimichi will be led by Asuma Sarutobi. Please go to classroom 1 to meet up with him. Second, we have the team of Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame and you will be led by Kurenai Yuuhi. Make your way to classroom 2 to meet up with her. Third, it'll be the team of Rock Lee and Tenten, and your instructor will be Might Guy. He is waiting in classroom 3 with great anticipation to meet you two."

As the classroom emptied out, only 4 people were left behind: Naruto, Hinata, Sasuke and Sakura. Clearly there would be two teams formed from the four of them. Naruto and Hinata's hearts were pounding so hard that they were about to burst out of their chests.

"Next is the team of Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, and your instructor will be Kakashi Hatake. Please wait in classroom 4 for him."

Sakura rejoiced like a fangirl at the idea of forming a team with Sasuke, but Sasuke looked very annoyed with the selection. Regardless, they exited the classroom, leaving only Naruto and Hinata behind with Iruka.

The two could not believe it. They wanted to jump and scream in joy for being placed on the same team, but they had to keep themselves in check for now. They simply looked at each other and giggled uncontrollably like little school kids.

"As you can already tell, the two of you are the final team and I've saved the best for last." Iruka said with a smile to his favourite students. "Even though Sasuke scored the highest mark individually in the class, the cumulative average of your team is the highest in the year. The two of you theoretically are the best team graduating from the academy, so make us all proud."

Naruto and Hinata nodded wholeheartedly at the request.

"But what about our instructor?" Naruto asked and almost on cue someone burst in through the door of the classroom quite unceremoniously. It was none other than Jiraiya, the Third Hokage. "PERVY SAGE! WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING HERE!?"

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me that? I'm NOT a pervert." Jiraiya replied in a rather irritated tone.

"You, not a pervert? Give me a break. If you're not a pervert then what are you exactly?"

A huge grin appeared across Jiraiya's face almost as though he was hoping to be asked that very question and he replied resoundingly with: "I'M A SUPER PERVERT!"

Naruto facepalmed at the sheer stupidity of the response. "This man! He's a completely lost cause. Whose brilliant idea was it to make him the Hokage?"

As Naruto complained, Jiraiya's eyes now fell upon Hinata. "Oh wow, it's been a while since I last saw you Hinata, but you're growing into a splendid young lady."

Hinata blushed lightly at the sudden compliment, but thanked him regardless.

Naruto however did not take the compliment in a very positive way. "Hey, don't eye her in a weird way you pervert."

"Being very protective of your future wife already I see. I'm impressed Naruto."

Jiraiya's comment came completely out of left field and caused the two to glow red like light bulbs.

"W-W-W-W-What do you think you're saying old man?" Naruto barely managed to stutter out.

"It is what I said, but I guess you're still too young to recognise how lucky you are to have someone like her by your side."

Naruto was too flustered to carry on with the conversation and as such changed its direction as quickly as possible. "T-Thanks for putting us on the same team though you pervy old sage."

"Don't sweat it. There's no way I could refuse the request of one of the old students. Hiashi is normally always very serious, but he was somehow even more serious this time when he asked me to assign you to the same team. But I would have done so anyway. If the two of you can create a team anywhere near the calibre as your parents once did under my tutelage, then that in itself will be a great success unlike any other. My team with your parents is still to this day considered the greatest Konoha has ever had. It'll be interesting to see if the two of you can exceed the standard set by your fathers. Of course to achieve such a feat you'll also require a teacher as great as I was back then. In that regard I have not slacked. I've found for you an instructor unlike any other, someone truly special."

"Who is it?" Both Naruto and Hinata asked in unison, no longer able to hold in their curiosity.

"Speaking of the man, it would appear he has just arrived. I'll let him introduce himself. Wouldn't want to ruin the surprise. I will say this though, once you've gone through his training, your weakness of genjutsu will be a thing of the past." Jiraiya concluded as both he and Iruka exited the classroom together.

Naruto and Hinata gulped hard when the door to the classroom opened once again as their new teacher walked in. The man they saw however was not someone they were anticipating one bit.

* * *

This time I will leave you with the question of who Naruto and Hinata's sensei is going to be? I've taken out all the usual suspects and left one small hint, so it'll be interesting to see how many of you can guess his identity correctly. Big props will go to all those who get it right since he's going to play an important role later on in the story.

And yes, I've gone crazy with the flashbacks this time, so much so that there was a flashback within a flashback. I bet you've never seen anything quite like that. But we'll get back to present day next chapter and carry on with where we left off with Naruto, Hinata and Boruto. My hope is that this chapter combined with last chapter gave some insight into Naruto and Hinata's past and how they started off. In particular I wanted to highlight Minato and Hiashi's close friendship and Hiashi's role as a sort of father figure to Naruto. On top of that I wanted to step away from the whole "Evil Hyuga" plot for this story. I want to portray them in a generally positive light.

From last time it would appear the majority of you believe that Minato did not betray the village, which is what the characters in this chapter are saying. But the full story of what actually happened to him will be revealed later. There are some interesting plot developments to be had in regards to that, so you'll have to be a bit patient for now. Same is true for when Naruto and Hinata will finally meet. Before that happens there are still a couple of characters that I have yet to introduce into the story. But again, we'll get there.

Anyway, that is all for now. Let me know your thoughts on the chapter and I hope to see you all again next time :)


	9. The Dreaded Reunion

**The Dreaded Reunion**

* * *

In front of Naruto and Hinata stood a young man that they were not expecting to see at all. The insignia on his vest instantly told the two that their teacher was an Uchiha and as they looked at his eyes there was something quite odd about them.

"So the two of you are my intended students – the supposed prodigy of the Hyuga and the Uzumaki's last hope, the best graduating team in the academy. I wonder if you can truly live up to those expectations." The young Uchiha who was only just a couple of years older than Naruto and Hinata said in a monotonous tone.

Naruto thus far was not impressed. "Wait, what? You're supposed to be our teacher? You aren't even that much older than us, not to mention you're an Uchiha no less. Why does our teacher have to be an Uchiha? I really didn't like the one Uchiha that I've come across in our class. He was a stuck up little brat who really did not make a good impression for his clan."

"N-Naruto-kun…that person isn't just any Uchiha. In fact, he isn't like any other Jounin sensei either." Hinata informed Naruto while still surprised to see the man in front of them. "I've heard of him. When we were first admitted in the academy, everyone was talking about a special student who had reached the rank of ANBU captain when the rest of his class was just graduating from the academy as Genin. He was unlike anyone ninja Konoha had seen before, the greatest genius the Uchiha had produced since the First Hokage. No…he was so good in fact that the word genius would do him a disservice. He is the first son of the Uchiha clan leader and Sasuke Uchiha's older brother. His name is Itachi Uchiha."

Given Hinata's description of their would-be sensei, Naruto couldn't help but be at least a little bit impressed, despite his reluctance. To think that this man despite his age had already established such a legacy was quite overwhelming.

"It would appear that my reputation precedes me." Itachi once again said in an emotionless tone. "Since you're already aware, I was an ANBU captain with a team of highly trained ANBU under my command, some of the best shinobi in this village. Being demoted to being an instructor for a bunch of Genin is not a role I am too keen on pursuing. I'm only here at the Hokage's earnest behest, who seems to consider the two of you very promising. However, I do not have such preconceived notions and as such for me to actually consider becoming your teacher the two of you will have to prove to me your worth and pass my personal test, as I do not give credence to the academy's examination criteria given how easily I passed them at a very young age."

"Who do you think you are to doubt our abilities like that and tell us you don't want to teach us? We don't want you as our instructor either. I really do hate all you snobby Uchiha after all. You're all the same!" Naruto retaliated furiously, which caused a small but noticeable smirk to appear on Itachi's face, something that angered Naruto even more as Hinata tried to calm him. "WHAT ARE YOU SMILING AT?"

"My younger brother Sasuke once told me about the brash and loud mouthed Uzumaki in his class. He said you were "all talk, no game". His words of course, not mine. But from what I've seen so far, perhaps Sasuke was right after all."

That little jab was all Naruto could take. He wanted so badly to wipe the cynical smirk off the Uchiha's face. "ALRIGHT YOU'RE ON! We'll prove to you that we're not some random hack jobs that graduated from the academy. So, what's the test?"

"The test has already begun the moment I entered the room. Technically, you've already failed the test as well. However, since you're just Genins who have just graduated, I am willing to give you a pass if you can figure out what your test was. You've got 60 minutes to scour the village and find the answer. I wouldn't waste a second if I were you."

Naruto and Hinata were both confused at Itachi's explanation but did not want to lose any precious time. As such they rushed out of the classroom in order to search for their answer. However, as the two exited the classroom, the real Naruto and Hinata were still here, slumped over on their desk, their consciousness caught within Itachi's powerful genjutsu. In fact everything that happened thus far from the moment Naruto and Hinata's gazes met Itachi's was all part of his genjutsu and their test right now would be to figure out that they were caught within a genjutsu.

"Isn't it a little unfair to target their weakness from the get go?" Jiraiya asked Itachi as he and Iruka re-entered the classroom and saw Naruto and Hinata lying on their desk.

"In the real world people will always seek to exploit your weakness. They will either have to overcome their weakness or it will be their undoing. That is the first lesson they need to learn as ninja." Itachi responded in a straightforward manner. "Since they are Genin, I've went easy by leaving some clues alluding to the fact that they've been caught by my genjusu as well as an opportunity to break the said genjutsu. But it won't be easy, even for trained shinobi. I'm curious to see if they can truly live up to the expectations you've set for them."

"I think…no, scratch that…I KNOW they will surpass my expectations." Jiraiya replied confidently with a smile.

And that was the day when Naruto and Hinata first became a team with Itachi as their sensei.

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

Adult Naruto smiled as he reminisced of the many memories of his childhood and his humble beginnings.

" _Itachi, you were a real pain in the backdoor from the start but I do have to admit, thanks to you I managed to become strong enough to become Hokage."_ Naruto thought to himself as he looked over his shoulder and appreciated the Fourth Hokage's haori that once belonged to his father. _"Dad, I've taken care of this haori like I promised to you as a child before you left on your mission. And I will continue to do so for as long as I live, since it was my final promise to you."_

Even though times had changed and Naruto had achieved much success in his life, somewhere along way he had lost the one person who helped and supported him to reach all this success. That person – the love of his life, his significant other and the one with whom he had gone through thick and thin to become the man he is at present was no longer beside him. Her absence left a permanent emptiness within Naruto's life that nothing could fill, no matter how many great feats he achieved. However, there was now finally hope within Naruto's heart. He had finally found Hinata and he would do everything in his power to bring her back. Naruto would reunite his family at all cost. With that thought, he returned home and retreated for the night.

 **Flash Forward: Weekend**

It was 8 in the morning on Saturday and Boruto tiptoed his way out of the house without making any noise. He shut the door behind him ever so gently in order to not wake up his mother and ran towards the village at full speed. Little did he know however that his mother was already awake and stepped out of the house as soon as he left. Even though Boruto did tell Hinata earlier that he would be going out for the day in order to play with his friends, Hinata was still worried about her son. She could tell there was something slightly different about his behaviour given that she had known him since birth and as such was concerned about him. She needed to ensure that everything was truly well and that her son was not going to get himself into any trouble, especially after the encounter she had with the Kumogakure shinobi not too long ago.

Hinata took a deep breath and exhaled before whispering: "Gentle Step: Leopard's Metamorphosis."

A stream of energy flowed out of Hinata's body and morphed into the shape of an ethereal reddish-orange Leopard that had small embers rising from her body. She was a special variant of the shadow clone technique that Hinata learned a long time ago from Naruto.

"It has been a long time since you've summoned me, Hime. I hope to be of service once again." The Leopard said to Hinata in a very polite manner.

"So it has been a long time indeed, but I need your help once more, Houka." Hinata replied to the Leopard in an equally kind tone.

Hinata's metamorphosis technique was the greatest form and evolution of her gentle step techniques, the very pinnacle of her training and Hyuga lineage. Throughout the years Hinata had developed her abilities to the point where she split her powers into three equal parts. One third of it she used freely herself in order to use her Hyuga related techniques as well as her Lion based transformations. Another third she always reserved for Houka and included with it her mastery of the Fire style, which gave Houka her fiery appearance and abilities. The last third Hinata barely ever used but reserved only if she were faced with a truly desperate situation.

While Hinata herself used various levels of Lion based transformations as part of her techniques, she had also created two more metamorphoses based around the other big cats that she gave to her clones, one of those being a Leopard that was given the name "Houka". Houka worked autonomously just like a clone without need to be directly controlled and had a personality of her own, a personality that was directly inherited from Hinata given that she was a part of Hinata after all. However, unlike normal shadow clones that were a direct replica of the original, Houka in particular took exclusively after Hinata's kind and gentle nature and as such heavily disliked conflict. She almost never engaged in combat unless the situation truly needed it and Hinata used Houka more for defensive and scouting purposes given that she was incredibly good at camouflaging herself and sneaking around. As such Hinata currently hoped to have Houka follow Boruto and observe him in order to ensure his safety.

"Houka, please keep an eye out for Boruto. I've been very worried about our current situation ever since I confronted the Kumo shinobi. I don't think those shinobi know about Boruto's existence, but still to be safe I'd rather have you watch over Boruto for now."

"Of course, that goes without saying." Houka agreed, given that she shared the same concern for Boruto as Hinata. They were one and the same after all. "I will keep a close eye on Boruto and inform you of any important developments that may happen."

Hinata nodded and within a moment the Leopard disappeared into the forest, camouflaging herself perfectly into the canopies in order to track her target from afar.

 **Elsewhere…**

It had been a long excruciating week of patience for Boruto, but the weekend was here and the wait was finally over. He was currently standing in front of Naruto's mansion on the hill right outside of the village. It was a bit of a trek to here, but the effort was going to be worth it as this was going to be the first day of his training as a ninja. Boruto was so excited that even though the agreed time of their meeting was around 12 in the afternoon, he arrived several hours early.

He was about to knock on the huge front doors but a small gap between them made him realise that the doors weren't locked. Since Naruto was already supposed to be expecting him Boruto decided to simply walk into the mansion and find his master himself. The place was absolutely huge, bigger than any house he had ever been in. The massive foyer led into the drawing and dining rooms as well as the kitchen. Two spiralling staircases led to the bedrooms on the upper floor. Boruto explored the ground floor first but found no sign of Naruto anywhere; leading him to conclude that he must still be upstairs in his bedroom. As such Boruto made his way to the upper floor and started to look through the many empty rooms until eventually he reached one which appeared to be occupied. Once he looked inside sure enough Naruto was lying there on his belly sound asleep in an undignified manner with one hand dangling from the side of the bed.

Boruto tiptoed his way to the bedside and found that Naruto was out cold like a sack of potatoes, drooling on to his pillow with an odd yet contented smile on his face. Instantly Boruto's mischievous side kicked in and all sorts of ideas on how to creatively wake Naruto up started to run through his head. However, his thought process was brought to a grinding halt when he heard his mother's name being invoked.

"Hinata…you can't…not there…not this early in the morning….especially after keeping me up all night." Naruto muttered in his sleep, given that he was currently having a rather vivid dream.

Boruto became very suspicious of what Naruto was saying as he didn't like the idea of some man thinking of his mother, even if it was in a dream.

"We can't do this right now. I'm sure Boruto is already awake." Naruto seemed to be arguing his case within his dream, but Hinata would have none of it. "A blanket won't be enough. He has the Byakugan now. We'll be found out. Please…HINATA!"

That was all Boruto could take. He didn't know what Naruto was dreaming about but he absolutely was against it. He was about to initiate an all-out assault on his new sensei in order to wake him up, but one single touch was all it took for Naruto to open his eyes wide.

The expression on Naruto's face when he saw Boruto was as though he had seen a ghost, and he screamed like a little girl. "BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! Your mother wasn't doing anything weird to me under the blanket, I promise!"

Boruto had a deadpanned look on his face. "What kind of weird things would my mother be doing to you under the blanket? In fact, why would my mother be here in the first place?"

Naruto looked around the room and lifted his blanket to find no one in the bed with him. Thus he gave out a sigh of relief realising that it was all a dream.

"N-Nevermind what I just said! Silly me! Of course your m-mother wouldn't be here. I say some random things sometimes. Ahahahahahaha!" Naruto put on a forced laugh in order to weasel his way out of the awkward situation he was caught in.

But his son was already suspicious and was on to him. "HEY, don't tell me you were having some kind of pervy dream about my other."

"O-Of course I wasn't." Naruto replied while sweating bullets and refused to make eye contact with the boy.

"I knew it! You were having a pervy about my mother after all, ERO-JIJI!" Boruto pounced on to Naruto like a wild animal in order to deliver justice. He started to pull on Naruto's hair and scratched at his scalp. "I'LL CLAW YOUR BRAINS OUT TO MAKE SURE YOU FORGET EVERYTHING YOU DREAMT ABOUT MY MOTHER!"

"Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch! That hurts! Stop it! Stoooooop! You're gonna ruin my beautiful blonde hair!" Naruto retaliated by pulling on both of Boruto's cheeks with considerable force. "And what's the big deal if I did dream about your mother? I can't control what I dream about. Plus your mother's a pretty good looking lady. What if I told you that I actually liked her?"

"I would destroy you if you even look at mama funny, ERO-JIJI!" Boruto replied with the utmost intent as the struggle between the two intensified and they rolled around on the bed in an attempt to overtake one another. Although they were having a heated argument, in reality the two were both enjoying the light-hearted scuffle.

"Are you saying it's wrong for someone to like your mother? You do realise that there was a time when your father must have liked your mother."

The mention of his father brought a sombre appearance on Boruto's face as he stopped fighting back, bringing the skirmish to a grinding halt. "If what we have now is the result of Tou-chan's love for Kaa-chan, then I think we're better off without him."

His son's words were like a spear right through Naruto's heart, and the momentary pain was almost unbearable. As such Naruto also took a serious yet curious tone. "Say Boruto, have you ever wanted to meet your father and know more about him?"

"I did. I asked mama many times to tell me about my father's identity, who he was, where he was. But every time I did there was this very painful look on her's face that I just couldn't bear to watch. I couldn't bring myself to hound her for answers when she was clearly in so much pain because of my father." Boruto explained with an extremely saddened look on his face, one that made it hard for Naruto to say anything back out of guilt.

"What would you do if you ever got to meet your father Boruto?"

"First I would punch him incredibly hard in the stomach for causing mama so much pain. Then I would ask him why he left us and did what he did. I want to know what happened directly from him."

There was a momentary pause but Boruto suddenly felt Naruto gently embrace him from behind. It felt so warm and comforting that he couldn't help but indulge himself in it momentarily.

" _I'm sorry Boruto for everything that I've done. One day I'll tell you everything that happened between me and your mother. I'll even let you punch me as hard as you can in the gut. Until then…until the time is right…your father will look out for you unbeknownst to your knowledge."_ Naruto promised his son while holding him in his arms, the moment bringing peace to his ever conflicted heart.

"Gross man, let go off me! What the heck do you think you're doing hugging me?" Boruto ended the father-son moment by shoving Naruto aside, feeling a little embarrassed. Such a showing of affection went against Boruto's code of manliness that all men should adhere to.

"I don't know…I just thought giving you a hug would make you feel a little better."

"I don't need hugs for that! Now what are we waiting for? Get your backside off the bed so that we can start my ninja training."

"Hai hai…" Naruto sighed in defeat as he got off the bed and went to the bathroom to refresh himself for the day. He wanted that tender father-son moment to have lasted a little bit longer. In any case, he washed up and got changed into a proper attire in a matter of minutes.

"By the way Boruto, how did you get in?" Naruto asked as the two made their way into the kitchen downstairs.

"Your front door was open, so I just walked in since you were already expecting me."

"Oh snap! I was so tired after the long trek here last night that I must have forgotten to lock the door. I just remember crashing on to the bed as soon as I got here. That being said I wasn't expecting you to be here this early in the morning. Does your mother know that you're going out? She might get worried."

"I did tell her that I'd be out playing today since it's the weekend."

"In that case, have you had breakfast?" Naruto asked as he brought out a box of cereal and heated up some milk.

"I haven't actually. I've been waiting the whole week for this day, so I kind of forgot to have breakfast. It's no big deal though."

"No, it is a big deal. You can't be skipping your breakfast like that Boruto. A ninja has to eat properly if he is to grow strong." Naruto chastised his son ever so lightly. "Now then, let us both have breakfast together before heading out."

"Fine…if you insist." Boruto pouted but obediently took the seat opposite to Naruto on the table as they enjoyed their cereal together. While they ate, Boruto had a question for his father. "Say, can I ask you something? You seem to be pretty well off. Does that mean ninja are well paid?"

"Hmmm…I don't think it would be fair to use myself as an example for the average shinobi because I don't fall into that category. Most shinobi are not this rich. That being said, how much a ninja earns is directly dependant on the number and difficulty of missions they complete. In other words, the greater a ninja's skill, the more they are likely to earn, which was the case for me over the years I suppose. What makes you want to know this though?"

"I was thinking that one day if I can become a strong shinobi and earn a lot of money, I'd like to buy mama everything that she wants. She has worked so hard for as long as I've known. I think she deserves to rest and enjoy life as well. I'd like to take away all her worries." Boruto explained in a deeply solemn tone.

Seeing his son's saddened expression in turn worried Naruto. "What's the matter Boruto? Is something the matter? You can share any of your problems with me. I am your teacher after all from now on."

"I explained to you last time that we've barely been getting by with the money that we earn from the bakery. But since it always ends up being very tight, Kaa-chan found a part time job on the weekend in order to make our financial situation a little better. Unfortunately she got injured on the first day of her work, and because of that they hired someone else while Kaa-chan has been recovering. It was very hard for her to find this job, so Kaa-chan was quite depressed after she heard she had lost it already. I…don't want to see her sad like that. I wish I could do something, but I don't know what to do."

Naruto could feel the concern in Boruto's voice and wanted so badly to be able to help his family at that moment. Suddenly a genius idea struck Naruto out of the blue. "Actually Boruto, I think I may have a job proposition for your mother, and she'd literally be perfect for this work."

Boruto gave his father a questioning look. "A job? But who'll she be working for?"

"Don't worry about it, because I'd like for your mother to work for me."

There was now a hopeful glint in Boruto's eyes, which was in turn followed by a deadpanned expression. "You're not gonna suggest something pervy now are you? Like whatever you saw my mother do to you in your sleep? If you do I'll beat the crap out of you."

The mention of the dream flustered Naruto as vivid memories of him and Hinata doing things that should never be witnessed by a child, let alone their own son flooded his brain. "OF COURSE NOT! Hear me out, okay? You see, I rented out this mansion last week when I moved into this area to undertake a secret mission. What I did not take into account was all the cleaning and cooking that would need to be done even if I'm not here for most of the week. Since I'm a busy man and it takes me ages to travel to and from here, I don't have time to take care of those chores. In other words I need someone to become the caretaker of this mansion, who would visit once a week, clean up the place and cook some food. I was thinking that your mother might be the perfect person for this. It's a pretty simple job for one day a week and I'll pay a very good rate as well. I'd preferably like to entrust this place to someone trustworthy. So it's a win-win situation for the both of us. What do you think? Can you convince your mother to take up the offer?"

Boruto knew that despite all the silly antics, Naruto was a truly nice guy deep down. As such without even thinking twice he emphatically nodded his head. If his mother had to work for someone, it would much rather be Naruto than anyone else. "I'll do my best to convince her!"

"Perfect! In that case, take this." Naruto handed a key for Boruto to hold on to. "That is a spare key to this mansion. Bring your mother here tomorrow at some point. I won't be around since I have to get back early tomorrow morning for a work related meeting, but I'll have the details of the job written up for her."

"Sounds like a plan." Boruto replied with a huge grin across as his face, one that was very reminiscent of his father.

As such the two finished up breakfast and set out to the destination of their new training spot. Boruto was currently sitting on top of Naruto's shoulders as they jumped from tree to tree uphill.

"Where exactly are we going?" Boruto asked curiously.

"I found a nice spot at the top of this hill last week that'll be perfect for the first training exercise I have in mind for you."

Boruto couldn't help but get excited. "What is it? What are we going to start training on?"

"Actually Boruto, before we begin your training in earnest, there is something that I must ask you; something very important." Naruto said in a rather serious tone. "Why exactly is it that you want to become a ninja Boruto? Is it the money? Is it power? The reason I ask is because every shinobi has their own reason, but if that reason is not strong enough then that person is destined for failure. So what drives you Boruto?"

The question, even though it was deep did not faze Boruto at all because he had known the answer all along. "The reason I have always wanted to become ninja is so that I can one day protect my mother, the one person in the world right now whom I care for the most. She has always protected and taken care of me by herself, so I want to do the same for her as well. I don't ever want to see her get hurt again. That is why I want to become strong as a ninja, in order to protect the ones I care for."

Boruto's words brought a smile to Naruto's face as he could feel the purity and sincerity imbued within them.

"Well said. I think you certainly have promise, at least in will alone. That is all I need." Naruto replied proudly as the two dropped on to an open field at the very top of the hill. From here the view was spectacular as one could see the open skies as far as the eyes could see. It was perfect for ninja training since the area was very spacious and there were no other people around to get in the way.

"Alright, time to get started. Prepare yourself, for I have a very important test for you to start off your training." Naruto gave his son a heads up.

"I'm ready…" Boruto replied with a nod, albeit a bit nervously.

However, just as Naruto was about to start the training exercise, he suddenly sensed a very subtle movement within the woods a bit further away, which would have been missed by most. But Naruto knew that feeling all too well. As he turned towards the target, he barely caught a glimpse of it within the woods before it disappeared, but the sight was one he could not be mistaken about. Instantly Naruto felt his stomach drop due to dread and anxiety. There was not a second to waste.

"Boruto, stay here! I will be back in a bit!" He ordered his son and dashed as fast as he could into the woods. He jumped from tree to tree downhill with as much speed as his legs would allow, but to his shock the one he was after was waiting for him right in the middle of the woods, far enough so that Boruto would not be able to see or hear them.

Houka, the flaming Leopard that Hinata had sent after Boruto was anticipating Naruto.

" _No…Noooo…This is still too early."_ Naruto uttered in despair within his mind as he saw all his plans and hopes crumble before his very eyes. _"I should have expected this given how perceptive Hinata is. I should have known that Hinata would send over Houka to observe Boruto. The gig's over…by now Hinata's probably already on her way…and I have to think of something fast, or this will end in disaster."_

"Houka…"

"Naruto-kun…"

They uttered each other's names and thus the dreaded reunion was about to be underway.

* * *

Here we go! Next chapter should be very interesting. I'd love to know your opinion on Naruto and Hinata getting back together. Do you want them to reunite without any arguments/hassle, or do you want there to be a big conflict? Or perhaps you want something in the middle? I certainly have my plans and I'm really curious to see if it matches up with what you all want.

From last time props to the majority of you: **gio08, NC Me, Kameron the Phantom, Jane, Guest 8, kentut, Rachel, Trainer1232** who guessed correctly that Itachi was their sensei, but there were quite a few guesses that were Shisui, which was also pretty understandable. Also got to give props to **Blackcurse11, Rachel** and **Trainer1232** for saying it could be Obito because a long time ago when I was still planning out the story it was going to be Obito. But since then the story has taken different turns.

 **HjLostDreams** : Dang it! I thought I did something unique by putting a flashback within a flashback. It was going to be something like a flashbackception. But I guess I was already beaten to it lol.

 **usagiray** : You know me man. If I had a wrestling title, it would probably be "The Undisputed Cliffhanging Champion of the World". I know that sounds awful but I love me some cliffhangers. Or maybe someone else has beaten me for that title as well?

 **SilverFang555** : You're right. I never really did say what happened to Rin after Minato and Obito's betrayal. But that is on purpose.

 **Guest 8:** I MUST KNOW WHAT YOU KNOW! It's almost like you're investigating a crime scene here lol.

 **gio08, Jane, hinataellis, Blackcurse11, Writingnerd291, kentut** : I'm glad you guys liked the flashbacks and especially the baby NaruHina scene. That was for me the definite highlight when I was writing it. I wanted to make it as adorable as I could.

 **Kameron the Phantom** : Thanks for the nice comment. Glad you like the two man cell idea. To me it just makes for more intimate teams since the two teammates would really have to cooperate well with each other.

 **Rose Tiger** : You've got your wish. Something's about to go down between Naruto and Hinata. Whether it is what you're expecting is the big question.

That is all for today. As always let me know what you thought and I will see you all in the next chapter :)


	10. April Fools Special: A Favorable Ending?

**April Fools Special Chapter: A Favorable Ending?**

At the time this was a special chapter written for April Fools. So take it as a light-hearted joke chapter.

* * *

As Naruto expected, it wasn't long before Hinata arrived at the scene. The reunion he was dreading all this time had just come to pass and he was clearly not prepared for it. The two looked at each other square in the eyes, unflinching, unmoving, but ready to act at moment's notice. There were so many emotions going through their minds at once after coming face to face with one another that neither of them knew how to quite react. However, after staring at one another for what felt like an eternity, they couldn't hold back any longer.

In the blink of an eye the two closed the distance between them and engaged in a very lengthy kiss. They only broke apart once the requirement of breathing absolutely necessitated it. Now they were peering at each other's eyes in a daze while tightly embracing one another.

"Naruto-kun…take me." Hinata whispered in a slightly shy yet firm tone.

"I would have even if you didn't ask me to. I've been dreaming about you and this day for the past eight years and it's been driving me nuts." Naruto whispered back to her. "But what happened to all that anger and resentment you had when you left? It's like all of it just disappeared as soon as we met once again."

Hinata averted her gaze out of embarrassment of what she was about to say. "How could I resist the hunk of a man standing in front of me right now? My hormones have been going crazy from the moment I saw you. Even if my mind may resist, my body craves you after so long Naruto-kun. I can't hold myself back any longer."

That was all Naruto needed to hear as he pushed Hinata down right there on to the forest floor.

"As much as I may want to get back together with you right now, don't think I'm still not mad about you running away from me all those years ago." Naruto stated his feelings rather assertively as he plotted to take advantage of his wife's weakness of him to get her to submit completely to his whims.

"I'm sorry. I'll do anything to make it up to you, so please, don't keep me waiting any longer." Hinata replied in a deeply desperate tone, one that brought a mischievous smirk to Naruto's face.

"As punishment for leaving me for eight years, I'll have you give me eight babies in a row, non-stop. You know how much I wanted a big family."

"I'll give you eighteen. I don't even know if it'll be physiologically possible, but I'll make you babies until my body can't possibly make any more. So let's not waste any time. I WANT you right now Naruto-kun!" Hinata's request had now turned into a demand as her tone made it sound like she was going insane.

"I guess we better get to work." Naruto was about to begin when he suddenly remembered something important. "Wait, Boruto's still waiting at the top of the hill for me."

"Don't worry about Boruto. He'll find his way home. You have a much more important matter to tend to right now – making him more siblings. So come on, just take me already! Or perhaps you want me to take you instead!" Hinata's eyes and her tone of voice indicated that she had completely lost her mind to desire at this point, and being familiar with her traits when it came to mating, Naruto knew it would be unwise to keep her waiting any longer.

Thus without any further words the two went at it like bunny rabbits and over the years multiplied like bacterium, to the point where they had enough children to start up a football team. As such the sport of football was invented in the ninja world and the team of Naruto and Hinata along with their herd of children became the undisputed champions, beating all contenders that challenged them for their title. The sport became so popular in fact that ninjas stopped fighting each other in battle, but rather used their powers to challenge one another in games of shinobi football for territory. Given the overwhelming strength of team NaruHina, as it was officially called, Naruto and Hinata along with their many children took over all nations by destroying every single one of them in uncontested games, eventually becoming the new rulers of the Earth. Thus there was world peace and they lived happily ever after.

To celebrate the momentous occasion of Naruto and Hinata becoming the new overlords of the shinobi world and to cement their legacy into history for generations to come, this day was named "April Fools Day".

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* * *

Happy April Fools Day everyone!

Did I manage to get you? Actually to be honest the way I set up the chapter it was supposed to start off somewhat serious, then get suspicious and finally become obvious that it was all a joke at the end. So I guess the better question is, at what point did you realise this was all a joke? Or perhaps you knew from the beginning due to the update date. Or maybe you would be happy if the ending actually turned out this way. Now wouldn't that be something, lol.

I suppose I should apologise a little here since a lot of you were looking forward to the next chapter after the cliffhanger I left you all with last time. But it has become a tradition for me to post an April Fools chapter every year at this point. It's all in good fun though, so please don't get too mad :p

On the bright side the next chapter is coming along well and should be up relatively soon. If you thought the ending of last chapter was intense, just wait till the next one. That's all for now. Hope you have fun pranking one another and I'll see you all next time :)


	11. The All-Seeing Eyes

**The All-Seeing Eyes**

Alright, finally back in action. I did say that I'd get this chapter up soon after the April Fools troll (sorry to anyone who I ended up angering), but life got in the way as usual. So to make up for it, this chapter is one of the longest I've written so far. It's packed from start to finish. Anyway, let's just get started.

* * *

"Houka…"

"Naruto-kun…"

They uttered each other's names with a look of disbelief in their eyes. So many years had passed since their separation that this reunion felt almost too overwhelming. Too many emotions were at play right now making it difficult to even decide what would be the right course of action. However as moments passed by and the memories came rushing back, Houka could no longer hold herself back. It was all just too much for her to endure.

"NARUTO-KUUUN!" She shouted as she transformed herself to take on a humanoid form, one that was almost identical to Hinata and lunged her entire body at Naruto, bringing him down to the ground with what could only be described as a bear hug and landing on to him in the process. "Naruto-kun, is it really you? You are the real one right? My eyes aren't deceiving me are they? It…it really has to be you!"

Naruto was going to reply when he felt a burning sensation on his body. "Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch! That hurts! Houka, you're gonna burn me into crisp! Turn off your flames!"

When Houka realised what was going on, she quickly jumped off Naruto's body as fast as she could. Even though in her current form Houka appeared very similar to Hinata, there were still a few key differences. Keeping to her fiery traits, Houka's eyes were a reddish orange in colour instead of Hinata's usual Byakugan. On top of this her hair was a burning red with small embers rising from them, which caused anything that touched her hair to start burning as well. More importantly though, when it came to her nature, Houka exclusively gained Hinata's gentle and caring side, and with it her intense love for Naruto. So even though Hinata's personality was more complicated in that she had more conflicting emotions regarding Naruto after separating from him, Houka still unequivocally loved him just as much as Naruto and Hinata's early days.

"I-I'm really sorry. I completely forgot about the flames in the heat of the moment. I'll switch them off now." Houka apologised while turning off the flames in her long flowing hair, giving her more of a normal human appearance. "But…to be able to meet Naruto-kun after all these years, I can't describe with words how happy I am."

In response Naruto simply grabbed her back into a tight hug. The warmth of her body was something he had missed ever so dearly for all this time. "I feel the same way. I've been searching like a mad man for all these years, waiting for this very moment to arrive. I believed with all my heart that I'd find you one day and that I'd never give up until that hope became a reality. But I was scared at the same time as to what would happen when we did finally meet again. I wondered how would Hinata react after leaving be behind all those years ago? Perhaps maybe even you, Houka, may have changed. But I'm glad that you are the same as you always were. At least if not anything else your feelings for me have not faded away. That is reward enough for me."

Naruto's words brought tears to Houka's eyes, but they evaporated away as soon as they formed from the heat. "There is no way my love for you would ever disappear. I have, I do and I always will love you with all my heart. That much you should know by now Naruto-kun given that you were there when I first came to be. After all, I am in essence a clone of the princess, albeit a special one, that you yourself helped her to bring forth."

"Then I suppose I'm lucky that I met you first Houka. But if you still feel so strongly about me even after all these years, then I must still have a chance of setting things right with Hinata as well, don't you think? Your feelings are after all derived from the original, in other words Hinata."

This time Houka's expression took a much more serious turn as she diverted her gaze away from Naruto. "You were always the love of Hime-sama's life. That much should be certain just from the way I act, given that I am a part of her. After all, everything about me is derived from her. But when she decided to leave you and Konoha behind, despite my most desperate of efforts I couldn't stop her. Even though she loved you so much, she was willing to make the greatest sacrifice. That should tell you how conflicted she was internally all those years ago, and she has lived with that conflict ever since then. The part of her that loved you, in other words me, and the part of her that was willing to sacrifice that love, her other self, has been at war with one another within her psyche. Therefore I don't think she'll take to your reappearance in her life very easily. It may be much worse than you think. As someone who has always wanted this reunion to happen, I can only advise caution at this point."

"It's okay. Just you willing to be here by my side is proof that there is still hope for a brighter future. For now I'm happy to have met you and our son. After all those years of searching, that's more than I could ask for."

"So, when did you actually find us Naruto-kun?" Houka asked curiously.

"It was during the incident with the Kumogakure shinobi. There were rumours floating around that a Hyuga may have been spotted around this area, so a bunch of shinobi were sent to investigate. But I couldn't just sit at home and twiddle my thumbs, so I decided to do some investigating of my own. It was during that time I managed to finally find you two, but to my dismay, I couldn't prevent Hinata from getting injured. So the least I could do was to tend to her wounds and provide Boruto with some emotional support. It's quite clear he cares greatly for his mother and was quite shaken up to see her get hurt like that."

"I see…so you were the man Boruto spoke so fondly about – the one who came to his mother's rescue when she needed most. The irony of the situation is quite unbelievable." Houka commented while giggling ever so lightly. "I'm glad Boruto finally got to meet his father. Even though Hime-sama never spoke of you to him, he has always been curious about the matter. From the little glimpse of interaction I saw between you two while tailing the both of you through the hills; it would appear that father and son have already become rather close. So, what are you two doing all the way up here from the village?"

"Actually now that you're here and aware of my presence, I would like for you to aid me in what I have planned for Boruto. For now let us return to him and I'll explain the details there." Naruto wasted no time and grasped Houka's hand strongly in his own after many years, leading her up the hill with him.

Eventually they arrived at the top once more where Boruto was waiting patiently for his father. Both Houka and Naruto observed from afar from within the trees while a clone of Naruto approached Boruto once more.

"Where the heck did you disappear off to for so long?! I thought you'd abandoned me after all that talk of wanting to train me. Geez!"

"Sorry about the hold up. There was someone I had to quickly go see, but anyway let's get started with your training."

"So, what exactly are we doing?" Boruto asked with excitement evident in his tone.

"Good question and before we get to that I want to tell you a little bit about your heritage." Naruto took on an actual sensei-like appearance for once as he got ready to explain some important facts to his new student. "You see Boruto, the powers that every ninja wields are ones that they inherit from their parents. That is why one's lineage is of paramount to a ninja. In fact a large majority of ninja are part of powerful clans which form the basic building blocks of a ninja village, the place where most ninja live. Members of a clan share a common ancestor from ages past and often times also share certain biological traits, or special powers if you will that are exclusive to the members of that particular clan. The reason why I'm telling you all of this is because I suspect that you Boruto are a descendant of the Hyuga clan."

"Hyuga…clan?" Boruto titled his head at a slight angle in both confusion and curiosity after hearing the name of the clan that was completely unknown to him.

"The Hyuga are one of the strongest clan in the village I live in. In fact, they are one of the strongest clans to have ever existed. When it comes to hand to hand combat, there are no shinobi that can compare to them. They fight in a very specific style that is exclusive to them alone as it's only possible with the bloodline trait that they are born with. That is why it is extremely important that we find out from the onset whether you've inherited the Hyuga's bloodline related traits as that will dictate the path of your training. Does that make sense?"

Boruto was both in awe of the clan he was descended from. Regardless he nodded his head in approval.

"Very well then, let us begin. And as I've said before, this won't be easy. So brace yourself." Naruto inhaled a lung full of air and immediately exhaled it all as a layer of thick mist. "Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique!"

Naruto used the signature technique of Kirigakure that he learned many years ago during his journeys, and using his mastery of the water element covered the entire area as far as the eyes could see with a thick layer of mist. He then disappeared within that mist leaving Boruto with no sense of direction as his vision was completely obscured by the mist.

"W-What's going on?" Boruto asked as he looked all around him but had no idea of where his teacher was.

"Now then, find me. That is the objective of your training." Naruto ordered from somewhere within the mist.

"How am I supposed to do that? I can't see a thing even a foot in front of me."

"Use your eyes to locate where I am. That is your test."

Boruto was very confused at this point about how he was supposed to find Naruto with his eyes when his eyesight was completely useless right now. As such he tried to use his sense of hearing to move over to where Naruto spoke from.

"That's useless." Naruto replied, this time from the completely opposite direction of where he was before. "You won't be able to find me like that. I'm too fast for you to catch up to me using just your hearing. You have to use your eyes. Dig deep and focus on them. Eventually, everything should become visible to you."

Boruto didn't know what he was quite supposed to do but regardless decided to close his eyes to concentrate. However when he opened them once again, nothing changed.

"This isn't working. I don't know what you want me to do when I can't see a thing." He complained to Naruto.

"Keep focusing and you should be able to tap into your latent powers."

Boruto tried concentrating his vision once more but nothing happened. He tried and tried again but there was no change whatsoever. At this point he was getting a bit annoyed. "Look, I've tried so many times but it's just not working. This is just stupid. How the heck am I supposed to see through this crazy mist? That's not possible. Let's stop this nonsense."

However, Naruto had some different plans. He decided that it was time for a more forceful approach. "Hmmm…it would appear that the stakes are not quite high enough. Let's fix that."

Suddenly out of nowhere Boruto was hit square on by a burst of wind that knocked him off his feet. The young boy was caught completely off guard and didn't even know what hit him as it felt like someone had just forcefully shoved him to the ground.

"W-What was that?" He asked in a state of disarray.

"That was just the beginning, and if you don't find me soon it'll only get worse." Naruto replied in an unusually stern tone.

Elsewhere within the trees the real Naruto and Houka were still observing Boruto. Houka however was not approving of Naruto's rough approach.

"Naruto-kun, what do you think you're doing? He's just a little kid. That attack no matter how weak it is will be painful for him."

Naruto on the other hand was set in his way and retained his tough expression. "A ninja's way is not one without pain. You and I both know this all too well. If our son really wishes to tread the same path as us, then he should understand this as early as possible. It'll make him stronger."

Back inside the thick mist, Boruto managed to get himself back up again, but just as he did so another burst of air knocked him to the ground.

"T-This is n-not fair." Boruto complained once more, this time in more of a meek tone as the entire atmosphere was starting to become rather intimidating to him.

"A ninja's life is barely ever fair. Now FOCUS your eyes or expect even worse!" Naruto shouted at his son and sent multiple bursts of air from several directions that battered the young boy like a rag doll before making him collapse face first on to the ground.

At this point Boruto was really starting to get scared. The somewhat quirky but kind Naruto that he knew so far seemed to be no longer, instead replaced by someone who appeared more akin to a battle-hearted shinobi. For the first time Boruto was afraid for his wellbeing and he couldn't help but wonder that perhaps this whole shinobi training was a bad idea. After all he didn't have his mother to protect him right now.

"Get up!" Naruto ordered from within the mist. "I hope you weren't expecting this to be some kind of a child's play. As I said before, it'll only get worse if you don't tap into your innate abilities this instant!"

"I don't…know a-about these abilities you speak of. I c-can't see anything. I can't do anything. I don't like this at all!" Boruto appealed his case as he used the last bit of energy he had left to stand back up for the final time.

Just as he regained his balance, this time there was no burst of wind that knocked him down to the ground. Instead the young boy felt what almost seemed like an incredibly sharp blade whizz past his head at tremendous speed. The small yet sharp stream of wind barely grazed one of Boruto's cheeks but opened a little cut that started to leak some blood, leaving him in a state of shock.

It wasn't the cut that scared Boruto but rather how powerful the attack was that just went past him. It scared him to the point where Boruto completely lost his cool and started to cry.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Houka screamed angrily at Naruto a distance away from the battlefield. "You've done more than enough! Do you not see that you've scared your own son to the point where is now crying? Isn't it clear by now that he doesn't have the Byakugan? I decided to watch from the sidelines and allowed you to do as you pleased thus far, but I can't let this carry on any longer."

Naruto was quite surprised to see Houka so furious. Anger was an emotion that she barely ever expressed, but this was one of the very rare occasions where she was truly livid. It just went to show how much she truly loved Boruto. However just as she was about to rush towards her son, Naruto grabbed her hand in order to stop her.

"This will be my last attempt and if it doesn't work I'll stop. But for this I really need your assistance. So please, hear me out." Naruto requested with all his heart. Although Houka was not particularly happy, she at least decided to listen to what he had to say.

Back inside the mist Boruto was crying and at this point wanted nothing more to return back home. "I don't like this. I want to go home. I want to go back to mama!"

Instead of the situation getting any better, he was only met with a somewhat sinister laughter.

"I thought you'd say that eventually." Naruto replied in a sadistic tone. "That is why I decided from the very beginning to bring you exactly what you want."

"Boruto…son…is that you?" To Boruto's absolute shock he heard his mother call out his name from within the mist.

"Mama, it's me! I'm over here!" Boruto replied as he frantically started to search for his mother by her voice. He looked for her through the thick mist until eventually he could see her silhouette a few steps in front of him. But just as he was about to reach his mother, a figure came from behind and forcefully dragged her back deeper into the mist.

The sound of his mother crying out to him as she was pulled away was like a nightmare to Boruto. He only wished this was all a nightmare, but unfortunately it was all a reality.

"THAT HURTS! PLEASE…NO MORE!" Hinata screamed in pain which drove her son to the point of madness.

Boruto no longer felt fear. Instead he felt anger like he had never felt before.

"I'M WARNING YOU! STOP HURTING MY MOTHER OR I WILL TEAR YOU APART!" He howled in pure rage.

"If you really want to protect your mother, this is you your last chance. Find me with your eyes, or else…" Naruto's voice trailed off only to be continued by Hinata's. "Boruto…please…help mama!"

That was it. That was all Boruto could take. He had finally reached his breaking point.

"Let…go…off…my…MOTHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! Boruto gave out a blood-curdling scream almost to the point of tearing his larynx out and during that moment of absolute desperation, in order to find his mother, the young Hyuga felt a new kind of power surge through his eyes unlike anything he had ever felt before. Suddenly Boruto could see everything for miles as though the mist didn't even exist. He knew exactly where both his mother and her assailant were. In an incredible burst of speed he closed the gap between himself and Naruto, punching him with every bit of energy he could muster in his arm.

The incredible moment was followed by a pop as the person Boruto had punched turned out to be nothing but a shadow clone that evaporated away with a poof of smoke. At the same time, a massive burst of wind flowed through the entire field and blew the thick mist away with it. Boruto looked over towards his mother and to his surprise found out that the person in front of him even though she looked and sounded like his mother was not actually his mother. Now that the area was clear the real Naruto emerged as well while clapping his hands with a truly happy expression on his face.

"You did it Boruto! You've awakened your innate power – the Byakugan. The plan worked!"

At this point Boruto was all but confused especially with his newfound eyesight. "What is going on? Where is mama?"

"You see Boruto, earlier in the week I spoke with the current leader of the Hyuga clan in regards to your situation. He explained to me that although the majority of the Hyuga are born with their special eyes, in some rare circumstances that may not be the case. In such an instance which was the case for you, those eyes need to be unlocked by means of a strong emotional impulse. That is why I asked this friend of mine to transform into something that resembled your mother in both look and sound."

"I'm sorry for deceiving you Boruto. I was simply following along with his plans." Houka explained and given that she had known Boruto since birth, she was truly shocked to see him with the same eyes as his mother.

"In any case, I'm truly sorry for being so tough on you back there and for bringing your mother up. But that was the only way I could think of that would get a strong enough emotional response out of you to bring out your latent powers." Naruto got on his knees before his son and apologised with all his heart while holding his hands in his own. "Will you be able to forgive your terrible teacher?"

Although he was still a bit angry at Naruto for deceiving him, Boruto could understand and quite literally feel the effect of the training already. He could have never imagined such eyesight could exist, let alone within him. Thus he decided to settle the matter by landing a karate chop on his teacher's head.

"Fine, I'll forgive you but only if you promise to never involve mama again, no matter the cause. Is that clear?"

Naruto nodded emphatically in response. "So, what do you think of your new eyes?"

This was the first proper chance Boruto had to calmly use his new eyesight. He didn't even need to turn his head in order to see around him. He could see behind, above, below, to his sides all at the same time. Not only that, he could see everything for miles. Even Naruto himself was almost glowing with a particular hue due to his ninja powers. It was just unbelievable.

"What are these eyes? They're crazy." Boruto asked in awe.

"Those eyes are called the "Byakugan", the all-seeing eyes. They are called so as they grant the wielder a near 360 degree field of view and a highly telescopic vision that allows them to see for miles and see through objects. The Hyuga clan has an exclusive fighting style dedicated to the use of that eyesight. These eyes that you wield are one of the strongest and most coveted of bloodline traits in the whole world. They are incredibly powerful, which is why you must keep them disabled at all times unless absolutely necessary. Is that clear?" Naruto asked as he finished explaining the importance of his son's newfound powers.

Boruto nodded and deactivated his Byakugan, returning his eyes back to their usual azure blue hue.

"Alright then, I think we should call that the end of our first training session. We made some massive progress and from here on out we can further develop your abilities that take advantage of your Byakugan and other abilities." Naruto said as he patted his son proudly on the head. "Anyway, go home and rest for now. Make sure to bring your mama along to my place tomorrow for the job. I will see you next week. Don't do anything crazy with your eyes until then."

Thus both father and son waved goodbye to one another and Boruto was off on his way back home, leaving Naruto and Houka behind by themselves.

"Naruto-kun, even though I'm truly glad that both you and Boruto were able to meet and that Boruto was able to awaken his latent Byakugan, I don't think Hime-sama will be at all approving of your secret meetings with Boruto, especially given what you've been teaching him." Houka stated to Naruto rather seriously.

"What else was I supposed to do? It's not like I could just show up at their front door and introduce myself to Boruto right in front of her. All I could do was meet him in secret and keep my identity a mystery in order to stop Hinata from knowing. As his father I think I have some right to get to know my own son and spend time with him. I don't think I'm completely in the wrong here." Naruto retaliated. "As far as me teaching Boruto about his ninja lineage and capabilities, I think he has a right to know his own origins. How much longer does Hinata think she can hide from Boruto the truth that he is a ninja? One year? Two years? Five years? Eventually without a doubt he'll find out about the powers that exist with him and he'll only come to resent his mother for trying to hide such important matters from him."

Houka however shook her head strongly in disapproval. "Have you forgotten why Hime-sama left you and Konoha in the first place? She did so in order to escape her ninja past and above all to keep Boruto safe from the suffering and torment associated with that life. What do you think her reaction will be when she finds out that you've thrust yourself back into her life once again and are trying to drag Boruto back into the same cycle of pain that she sacrificed so much to break free from?"

"Hinata never gave me a chance to rectify our situation at all. She just packed up and bolted, leaving me behind before I could even do anything. You tell me, how exactly was that fair?" Naruto asked with frustration clear in his voice. "It really made me wonder what exactly happened to the love she once had for me."

Naruto questioning Hinata's love for him really hit Houka where it hurt the most, leaving her very upset. "Have you really forgotten everything, or is it just convenient to twist the story as you see fit? Hime-sama gave you a choice to run away with her. She did her absolute best to convince you to break free from the shackles of the evil that was within Konoha and live the rest of your lives together as a happy family somewhere far away. Yet despite Hime-sama desperately urging you to escape with her, YOU STILL CHOSE TO STUBBORNLY REMAIN IN KONOHA! And now you speak of her not giving you a chance? That is not fair after all that she has endured for your sake, the one that she loved the most. So even though she couldn't convince you back then despite her utmost efforts, she promised herself that she would do whatever it takes to protect Boruto, her son, the one who she saw as a physical manifestation of the love that the two of you once shared. The choice that she made to leave everything behind, including you, in order to protect Boruto from suffering the same fate as his father destroyed her on the inside, but that is how much she cherished her love for you, and yours for her. Now she lives with the one hope of giving that son of yours a peaceful and happy life."

"I know that…I really do…but the fact that she didn't put her faith in me to overcome the odds and do the same for our son pains me even to this day." Naruto explained in a deeply sorrowful tone. "If only she had trusted me back then and remained in Konoha, she would have been able to witness me finally becoming Hokage."

There was a moment of silence between the two as Houka tried to digest the bombshell of news Naruto just dropped on her. But it was only when she connected this piece of information with a certain other that her face was completely overtaken by a sense of dread. "Wait, if you're the Hokage right now then the message Hime-sama found addressed to the Raikage about a group of individuals within Konoha wanting to assassinate the Hokage…then their target must be…NARUTO-KUN!"

Naruto averted his gaze from her but nodded ever so lightly.

"THEN NOTHING HAS CHANGED AFTER ALL THESE YEARS!" Houka shouted at Naruto as she shook his body with immense force. "Even after you've become the Hokage, you are in the same danger you've always been in. The reason why Hime-sama left that accursed village in the first place has not changed at all."

Even though Naruto wanted to argue his case, he really didn't have anything he could say back to her. His life was one that had always been filled with pain and hatred since childhood. The fact that there existed those within Konoha who wished to see him disappear was not one that he could deny. Thus he had no choice but to hang his head in defeat.

"Despite knowing your current situation, you still wish to drag Hime-sama and Boruto back into all of this?" Houka asked in a truly concerned tone, yet she once again got no reply. Thus with a heavy heart she had no choice but to turn away from Naruto. "I'm sorry, but despite my undying love for you not even I can agree with this decision of yours. I must inform Hime-sama of your involvement with Boruto and leave her to reach a conclusion of her own."

Seeing his wife, the one he cherished so much, walk away from him once more was not something Naruto could endure a second time. Thus he rushed to close the distance between them and desperately grabbed her in the tightest embrace he could muster.

"Please…don't abandon me. After finally finding you after all these years, I can't bear to lose you again. I need you back in my life. I want Hinata back in my life. I just want to be together with my only remaining family members. So please…"

As he cut off, to Houka's surprise she could feel Naruto's tears dropping on her shoulders, and every single one of them tore at her very core to see him in such pain.

"I'm asking you…no...I'm begging you…please put your faith in me just this once. I promise I will set everything right. I will protect my family with my very life. I will do everything possible to get Hinata back. Just give me once chance. Please…" Naruto finished by making his final melancholic plea as years of pent up emotions overflowed from within him.

Moments passed as the two remained silent and in their respective positions before Houka finally turned around and gently caressed Naruto's face with tears of her own in her eyes.

"Naruto-kun, I want you to listen carefully because this next part I'm going to say not as Houka, but as Hinata Hyuga." She stated with one of her genuine heartfelt smiles as she prepared to speak the feelings of her true self. "Even though I left you years ago, I've felt nothing but pain and agony for doing so. Deep inside I've always wanted Boruto to be able to play with his father and for the three of us to be a happy family together. Therefore to fulfill that wish of mine and for the sake of the love that the two of us once shared, I will do everything in my power to help you get back together with Hime-sama, or perhaps I should say…myself."

Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing. He was overjoyed beyond words. Even though getting back with the real Hinata would not be an easy task after all these years of separation, at least to have the support of a part of her was a big first step. Thus the two shared a heartfelt hug in order to celebrate their reunion.

Elsewhere…

Boruto had decided to take the long way home by going through the forest in order to try out his new eyes. It was just mind blowing to him how he could literally see right through the trees and miles ahead. He still couldn't get over how amazing his own ninja ability was, and if this was any indication, he couldn't wait to learn more about what he was capable of. However, his enthusiasm came to a grinding halt when Boruto suddenly saw a group of people coming towards him at incredible speed using his Byakugan. He could tell just by their movements that these individuals were shinobi, and despite his attempts to run away, they proved far too fast for him to outrun. As such he was currently surrounded from all directions by a large number of ninja. The current circumstance did not bode well for Boruto given that there was no one in the vicinity within the secluded forest to help him and he had no chance to escape. His heart started pounding in fear and his breathing got heavier as he didn't know what to do. The situation appeared truly dire.

Just at that moment, one of the shinobi broke away from the group and dropped in front of Boruto. She was an older lady who appeared close to her fifties, but her most distinctive feature was the long red hair.

"Fear not young one. We do not wish to hurt you." She said with a smile as she ruffled Boruto's hair ever so gently. "After all, you're one of us."

Thus, another fateful meeting.

* * *

What did I say? There's a lot that went down in this chapter, especially Boruto finally activating Byakugan. As usual, mad props will go to all who can guess the identity of the woman that Boruto has just met. This will lead to something huge.

From last time, I got some really great responses from all of you in regards to how you want Naruto and Hinata's reunion to happen. So I've decided to do something interesting and sort you guys into three categories within a scale of 1-10, where 1-4 is there being little to no conflict, 5 is something in between, and 6-10 is some kind of conflict that can range from a little big to absolutely massive. Here is where I think all of you fit in from your responses (correct me if I'm wrong):

1-4: **magikiz2sick, Biotechnus, Guest 8, Albert da Snake, monkeyz2**

5: **Blacky2010, Wondering Knight, gio08, usagiray, Blackcurse11, kentut, Hikari To Seimei, in your dreams as well, Trainer1232, gummy b3ars, NaruHinaRyu, Sunflower-lilies**

6-10: **Flameraven, Perisha, naruhinakiralacus, orca285**

As you can see from the responses the overwhelming majority of you want something in the middle in terms of the reunion being too easy or too difficult. I'm going give a little teaser by saying that the actual answer lies somewhere in the 6-10 range, meaning there will most certainly be a conflict and the reunion will not be easy. However, the the size of the conflict is what I'll leave a mystery for now. It could be somewhat mild or it could be absolutely full blown insanity. Either way, it'll be a ride on the feels train for sure.

As always I would love reading what you thought about the chapter and the idea that the part of Hinata that loves Naruto (Houka) is going to be helping him get back together with the real one. I thought that would make for an interesting scenario. Anyway, that is all I have for today. Until next time, be well and see ya!


	12. Ideals VS Reality

**Ideals VS Reality**

* * *

"After all, you're one of us." The red haired lady said to Boruto while ruffling his hair. "You're a part of the Uzumaki clan."

Boruto backed off slightly in suspicion. "Uzu-what?"

"Uzumaki. U-ZU-MA-KI! You are a member of our clan."

"Wait, who are you exactly?"

"Ah yes of course, I should introduce myself first." The older lady replied with a huge grin across her face. "My name is Kushina. Kushina Uzumaki. And I suppose I would be your grandmother."

There was a moment of silence followed by Boruto's mouth opening wide in sheer disbelief before he was finally able to speak once more. "WHAT THE HECK?! You can't go around dropping bombshells like that out of nowhere."

"I am your father's mother, so that would make me your grandmother, would it not?" Kushina asked ever so innocently.

"But…but…but…how would I know you're telling me the truth."

"I guess you're right. I need a way to prove my claim. Let me think…" Kushina was deep in thought for a few seconds before she stuck out her tongue like a little girl in defeat. "I got nothing…"

Boruto slipped on to his back at the sheer stupidity of the moment and now looked at his so called grandmother in awe. "Are you firkin kidding me? That's your response after making such a bold claim?"

"Oh actually I know! I've got a sample of your father's blood. If his DNA matches with mine and yours matches with his then that would prove I'm correct. So let me get some of your sweet delicious blood!" Kushina's previously innocent look suddenly vanished, only to be replaced by a truly nefarious one as she opened her mouth and revealed two extremely sharp canines.

"BWAAAAA!" Boruto screamed in fear at the sight and turned around to run, only to be grabbed by the shoulders by Kushina. "You're not my grandmother. You're a vampire!"

"Oh ho ho ho ho!" Kushina laughed in an evil manner with Boruto firmly in her grasp. "It would appear you've caught on to my true identity. I'm a vampire that has lived for centuries by feeding on the blood of young children. Even my hair has become blood red in colour from all the blood I've drank throughout my life. And…YOU'RE NEXT!

"Help! HELP HELP HELP HELP HEEEEELP! I DON'T WANT TO GET EATEN BY A VAMPIRE! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Boruto screamed and writhed around for dear life, but the bite never came. Instead he felt a loving and warm embrace from behind.

Kushina laughed her heart out as she took out her fake teeth and put them away. "I'm sorry little Boruto, I couldn't help it. I just love playing pranks on others. It's in my nature. I hope I didn't scare you too much."

Boruto was amazed by how lively and aloof this woman was. It was in sharp contrast to his mother's gentle yet sometimes strict nature. Regardless, as a bit of a prankster himself at heart, Boruto could appreciate a light hearted joke.

"On a much more serious note, I really am telling the truth. As I mentioned before, both me and your father are members of the Uzumaki clan, so that makes you an Uzumaki as well."

However Boruto was not quite convinced. "I thought my father was a Hyuga since I have the Hyuga's eyes. I don't see how he could be this Uzumaki you speak of."

"I see, so you're already aware of your Hyuga heritage. But it appears you don't quite know the entire truth about your parents. No matter. Boruto, come to the riverbank with me for a second." Kushina requested and the two walked over to the side of the water that was only a stone's throw away from where they initially were. "Now look into the water with your Byakugan activated and tell me whose eyes they may remind you of."

Boruto didn't know what this lady was getting at but he followed her instructions and looked at his own reflection on the water with his new eyes. One glance was enough to cause Boruto to nearly fall over backwards in shock, only for the fall to be broken by Kushina.

"What do you think? Anyone come to mind?" She asked the obvious.

Boruto couldn't believe what he was about to say but the evidence was glaring right back at him when he looked at himself once more on the water. He couldn't deny it even if he wanted to. "These eyes…they're just like…my mother's."

"Indeed. It isn't your father that is a Hyuga. It's actually your mother." Kushina reinforced the conclusion her grandson had just reached.

Words could not describe how shocked Boruto was. He just couldn't believe that his mother had kept such a huge secret from him all this time. He almost felt betrayed.

"I-It can't be. My mother…can't be a n-ninja." Boruto shook his head in denial, but his own eyes spoke against him. He just didn't know right and wrong anymore.

"But it is the truth Boruto, no matter how much you may wish to reject it. It would appear that your mother has told you little about who she is, who your father is, and above all who you truly are. I can probably guess why as well. And I can change that. I think it is about time you knew the truth about the events that transpired between your parents which caused their separation. I'm sure you're curious to find out as well."

Even though he was still in shock over what he had just found out, Boruto knew that this may be his only chance in finding out more about his parents. He could feel that this woman was not lying from what she pointed out thus far, and if she was indeed his grandmother, it would make sense for her to know the truth behind his parents. "Please, tell me about papa and mama! What happened between them? Why is Tou-chan not with us? I've always wanted to know. You have to tell me!"

"Very well then Boruto. If you're willing to listen to this old lady's tale, then I'd be happy to share it with you." Kushina replied with a truly melancholic smile as she along with her grandson sat next to one another on the riverbed. "However, I will warn you that the story of your parents is one that is fraught with sadness and sacrifice. It is one that does not have a happy ending. But I'm sure you knew that already."

Boruto reluctantly nodded his head given that he knew that his mother ended up alone with him in the end, but he wanted to know how it all came to be regardless. "Tell me what happened that led to this outcome."

"Before we begin with your parents' story, I think it is important that we preface it by going over who they truly are. As I mentioned earlier, your mother is a member of the Hyuga clan, one of the strongest clans currently in existence. However, your mother isn't just any Hyuga; she is in fact the eldest daughter of the current Hyuga clan leader, making her the heiress to the entire Hyuga clan itself. And it isn't that she held that position just by birth right alone. Your mother was one of the most gifted in the clan's history, leading to everyone referring to her as the "prodigy among prodigies". Given her unparalleled abilities, the Hyuga believed that she would one day lead them into an even greater future." Kushina described Hinata in the most concise way possible, but even this left Boruto completely speechless. To think that the mother he had known to be a simple baker had such a grandiose and storied background was too much for him to digest. Regardless, he wanted to know more.

"Moving on to your father – he is a man named Naruto Uzumaki." Kushina introduced her own son to her grandson and she could tell just by the look in Boruto's eyes that the name she just spoke of was not one he had ever heard before. "And as I told you before, your father is a member of the Uzumaki clan. Or perhaps I should say that he is a descendant of the Uzumaki clan given that our clan no longer exists, at least in the eyes of the world."

"What do you mean?" Boruto was left a bit confused by Kushina's play on words.

"A long time ago the Uzumaki clan was considered to be the most powerful clan in the entire ninja world; so powerful in fact that we had our very own village – Uzushiogakure. However, it was because of our power that there were those who sought to eradicate us. During a great battle, both our clan and village were destroyed without any trace, but due to the sacrifice of the Uzumaki's great clan leader at the time, a few of us were able to survive the ordeal and scatter across the world. I am a descendant of that clan leader, and due to our direct blood ties, so are you." Kushina elaborated. "If you think about it Boruto, given your parents' lineages, you are the scion of both the Uzumaki and Hyuga – two of the most powerful clans to have ever existed. That makes you quite special indeed."

The more Boruto learned about himself, the more he felt as though he had no idea who he truly was. He was starting to feel a form of resentment towards his mother for being so secretive, and now wanted to learn the reason why that was the case.

"Returning back to our story – as the surviving Uzumaki scattered across the world, much time passed and I eventually arrived in Konoha, the village where your father currently lives. It was at that time that I got married to your grandfather and found a new family with him. We started living together in that village happily and eventually had a child – your father. However, little did I know that the very enemy that once destroyed the Uzumaki clan were now firmly located in Konoha and I had just walked into the hornet's nest. Once the enemy found out that I was a descendant of the Uzumaki clan leader and that I was going to give birth to a new generation of the Uzumaki, they chose the perfect moment just when your father was born to eliminate us both, the last remnants of the Uzumaki." Kushina's voice started to crack ever so lightly as the thought of her last moments with her son shook her to her very core even to this day. "What transpired could only be considered a nightmare, an opportunistic attack from the shadows. Given how dire the situation was, in a last ditch effort I chose to sacrifice my own life in order to protect my child's. I succeeded, and from that day onwards Kushina Uzumaki was no more, at least to the world."

Boruto looked at his grandmother in awe and the once great sacrifice she made in order to protect her own child. There was however one big fact that did not quite match up. "Wait, but you're here right now."

"There is much more to the tale of me and the Uzumaki clan, but that is a different story for a different time. I'm sure you want to learn more about your father right?" Kushina asked, to which Boruto nodded. "Given that I ceased to exist, your father was raised alone by your grandfather, very similar to how you've been raised only by your mother. Your grandfather was a really kind man and given that he was the only family left, your father loved him just as much as you love your mother. However, disaster would once again strike. When your father was 7 years old, the same age as you are right now, your grandfather was taken away from him during a very important mission. At first it appeared that your grandfather, who was next in line to become the leader of Konoha had betrayed the village and colluded with the enemy, but this was in reality all a setup that was very intricately conspired by the same enemy that sought to eliminate both me and your father years ago. This time they had succeeded in eliminating your grandfather, stopping him from becoming the leader of Konoha and leaving your father all alone as helpless prey. However, it was during this hopeless time that your mother came to your father's aid and gave him the support he so desperately needed, thus beginning their story together."

"Then?! Then what happened?" Boruto was now listening to Kushina with his undivided attention. This was the first time he was witnessing the intrigue of listening to one's grandparents' stories, and it helped that the subject matter was one he had always been so curious about.

"The two went to the academy together and that is where their friendship began. Hinata introduced Naruto to her family and given that the current Hyuga clan leader was once great friends with your grandfather, he gladly accepted Naruto as though he was one of his own children. Due to your father's deep involvement with the Hyuga, the enemy couldn't get rid of him so easily. Not that they were in any particular hurry either given that your father was of no particular concern to them at the time. So they left him alone for the time being. Years passed by and your parents became best of friends. Eventually when they graduated from the academy, the two of them also became teammates as part of a ninja squad – "Team Zero" as it was called. This is the time during which they both shined brighter than ever before. They learned to harness the powers of their storied lineages and assisted one another in achieving unimaginable heights. They quickly climbed the ranks to become known as the greatest team Konoha had ever seen, and as you may imagine given your own existence, your parents also fell deeply in love with one another somewhere along the way. They got married as soon as they possibly could, but their marriage was kept a secret only between their closest family members and friends due to certain political reasons. Despite that the two were just glad that they could finally become a family together. It was a moment of unbelievable happiness for them both, and that happiness would only be exemplified even further when eventually you, Boruto, their very first child was conceived."

Boruto only ever saw his mother living alone with him for as long as he had known her, but to think that even his mother once lived a normal and loving family life with his father like every other family brought a silly little smile to his face.

"However, this is when everything went downhill." Kushina stated in a grim tone, causing the smile on Boruto's face to disappear completely. "Through his sheer hard work and dedication alongside your mother, your father had gained much goodwill and trust of the villagers, so much so in fact that he had become a future candidate to take over as the leader of the village. This was clearly not something our old enemies could allow at any cost. Even worst was the fact that somehow they had also found out that your mother was pregnant with the next generation of the Uzumaki, and this child would even have the Hyuga's blood coursing through him. As the child of two of the strongest shinobi in Konoha, you Boruto were destined to become one of the strongest and greatest yourself. If these matters were left to their own devices, the Uzumaki's bloodline would certainly make a resurgence within Konoha. Thus the enemy wasted no time and sought to bring about the final end to their age old conflict with the Uzumaki clan. During an extremely important mission your father had been assigned to carry out as an envoy to the leader of the village itself, the enemy attempted to set him up in such a way that would make it appear as though he had betrayed Konoha, very similar to what they had done to your grandfather. However, this was only the icing on the cake. While your father was occupied with the mission and the ordeals that he now faced therein, the enemy used the opportunity and went straight for the kill. They sought to put an end to the last remnant of the Uzumaki itself, in other words – you. Thus from within the shadows they attempted to assassinate your mother in the very village in which she lived, just as they had once done to me."

Boruto was stunned by what he was hearing. Although he had always wondered about his mother's history, never did he expect it to be so dark. It was almost too overwhelming, but despite his own hesitation Boruto just had to know the whole story.

"W-What happened next?" He asked in a very shaky voice.

"The enemy was most certainly strong, but your mother survived and barely managed to come out of that ordeal with both her and your lives intact. However, the event left her permanently scarred as she came to the understanding that even within the village of Konoha neither she nor you were safe and that the enemy would go to any lengths to bring an end to the Uzumaki. It didn't take long for her to realise either that everything that was happening to her family was a continuation of a cycle that had brought about an end to her husband's family, and if she didn't break free from that cycle fast, you Boruto would end up suffering the same fate as your father once did during his childhood, or worse. Just that one encounter with the perpetrator was enough for your mother to know that the enemy was far too powerful, and even her clan no matter its strength could not stand up to this enemy that lurked within the shadows. Thus after much deliberation Hinata decided that to protect her child that was yet to be born and to give him a peaceful upbringing far away from the pain and hatred that she had seen Naruto suffer throughout his life, she would leave Konoha and everything else behind with it."

Suddenly everything was falling into place. Boruto understood why his mother chose to live in such a remote village all on her own without a trace of any family members. However there was still one very important question that lingered in his mind. "What happened to my father?"

Kushina knew that his would be the ultimate question that her grandson would ask. As such she already knew her answer from the get-go. "That question – to answer it I will tell you the events that transpired during the night your mother ran away from Konoha. So listen carefully Boruto…"

 **Flashback: 8 years ago -** **Night of Separation**

Hinata violently shook Naruto as tears streamed down her face. Their arguments had come to a boiling point and she was at her wits end. Her decision was final. Now she only just had to convince Naruto.

"Please Naruto-kun, let's run away together! For the sake of our future, for the sake of our child, we have to escape this wretched village! We can go somewhere far away where no one would find us. We could live the rest of our lives happily as a family together away from the spiteful nature of the shinobi and this village's internal politics. PLEASE JUST COME WITH ME!"

Naruto shook his head in disapproval as he gently grabbed her hands and set them aside. "I've said this before and I'll say it again Hinata – I can't leave this village. The two of us have worked too hard together for me to simply leave this all behind. This village meant everything to my father. He had a dream to take it to even greater heights. I have to carry forward that dream. I need to keep his legacy alive."

"Just how much does this legacy mean to you Naruto-kun? Is it really worth the sacrifice of your wife and child? Because as everything is right now, the same fate that overtook your parents will end up befalling us. You know the truth about your parents now. The one who tried to kill me, that man said it himself that he was the one behind everything that happened to your parents. At this rate I will end up like your mother, you will end up like your father, and our child…I don't even want to think about it. So please Naruto-kun, wake up and understand that this village is corrupted by evil at its very core! It is a place that does not appreciate you or your dedication. You will suffer nothing but loss here. So let's leave this place together and go somewhere we can live in harmony. I'M BEGGING YOU!" Hinata desperately implored her husband to understand her feelings.

"It is precisely because of what happened to my parents that I cannot leave this village behind. I can't let their sacrifices be in vain. I want to become Hokage one day so that I can change this village from its very core and make it a place where the two of us and our child along with everyone else can live together in peace. That is why I won't back down in front of my enemies. I will overcome their odds at all costs. I will change the very ways of the shinobi for the better. Because these are my ideals."

"These ideals of yours are blinding you from the reality. Even if you one day manage to create the Konoha that you wish for, neither I nor your child will be there to witness it alongside you. That is the current reality of our situation...because just today the enemy tried to assassinate me once more."

"WHAT!?" Naruto was shocked beyond words by Hinata's sudden assertion.

"Somehow, someone mixed in a very deadly poison in my drink while the festival was ongoing in the village. Even in the open, the enemy is constantly watching from the shadows and biding their time for the perfect opportunity to strike. And they nearly succeeded today as well, if only not for me noticing at the very last second that something was wrong. Once again, both me and our child came far too close to our end. We aren't safe anywhere." As Hinata explained her grim situation, she suddenly felt incredibly sick inside, and within seconds she hunched over and threw up everything she had eaten for dinner earlier.

Naruto quickly held on to his wife to give her support and gently rubbed her back until she appeared to have recovered somewhat. "This pregnancy and our arguments are really taking their toll on you Hinata. I really think you should go home and rest for now. You're clearly very stressed out, which is not good for you or our child."

His words only angered Hinata even further. "How am I supposed to rest when there are those who are constantly trying to kill me at the first chance they get!? You aren't even at home anymore, so I have to sleep with one eye open at all times. Now I can't even eat or drink anything without fear of being poisoned to death. You tell me – HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO LIVE NORMALLY ANYMORE!?"

Naruto was still overwhelmed by the string of events that had transpired recently, and although he and Hinata did not see eye to eye in these matters, his family meant the world to him. Thus he strongly grasped on to Hinata's shoulders and looked directly into her eyes in order to communicate his message. "I will protect you and our child. I will keep you both safe no matter the cost. Even though the situation may look bleak at this moment, I will find a way to make everything right somehow. That is my promise to the two of you. So please, just put your faith in me."

Hinata however would not be swayed in the matter after having been through everything thus far. "Do not make promises you cannot keep. You're a human being Naruto-kun. You're not all powerful or infallible. If this was my own life that was at stake, I would gladly stand beside you and fight for your ideals with all my power. However, my life is no longer just my own. There is another life within me that deserves to see the light of this world and live a childhood that is devoid of pain and agony. Seeing the end as closely as I have, I simply cannot afford to put the life of that child at risk any longer. So this is my final plea to you Naruto-kun. Do what is right for our child!"

Naruto and Hinata's arguments continued as Hinata tried to convince Naruto to escape with her and Naruto tried to convince Hinata that he would somehow manage to protect his family within Konoha, until eventually it all reached an absolute boiling point.

Hinata looked directly at Naruto with the Hyuga's signature glare as tears streamed down her eyes at the same time, ready to give him the final ultimatum. "We've reached the end. There is nothing more for us to talk about. It is time you made a choice – Will it be this village, or will it be your family?"

Hinata hoped with all her heart that Naruto would look back into her eyes and just choose her and their child over Konoha. However to her dismay, Naruto turned away and gave her the reply that she simply didn't want to hear.

"I agree that there is indeed nothing more for us to talk about. I won't leave this village Hinata. But at the same time I won't abandon you or our child. I will make everything right somehow. That is my choice. Just return home and get some rest for now. It'll help you to calm down. Leave everything else to me."

Hinata felt absolutely shattered. To the very end she simply could not convince Naruto to run away with her, and given that she felt that there was no hope within Konoha for either her or her child, there was only one choice left for Hinata. Thus with a heavy heart she also turned away from Naruto, their backs to one another.

For the very first time in their lives both Naruto and Hinata were at an impasse. The futures that they saw for one another were vastly different, and the paths that led to those futures diverged away. The only answer now was separation.

Hinata started to walk, her steps so heavy that it almost felt like her legs were made of stone. Her vision was blurred with tears as she just could not stop crying. Even though her heart called out for Naruto to accompany her, he simply remained standing in place, unflinching in his resolve. Despite everything that happened between them, Naruto just did not expect his wife to be desperate enough to actually act upon her decision to leave everything behind, including him, and that this was the last time he would see her in Konoha. As such there were only two words Hinata had left for Naruto. Two words she had never hoped to have to say to him, even if they were just within her mind.

" _Farewell…Naruto-kun…"_

 **Several hours later…**

Hinata was walking through the depths of the Hidden Leaf Forest with two bags in hand. She left Konoha and sneaked away from the village under the cover of the night without letting Naruto find out, as he would definitely try to stop her if he knew. It was the toughest decision she had ever made it her life, but it was one she simply had to make in order to ensure the safety of her child. However, she just couldn't get rid of this sick feeling from within her, so much so that she was having troubles even walking. Luckily she found a small lake in a clearing within the forest where she could drop her belongings and wash her face. Deep in the night, the lake was almost glowing from the moonlight shining upon the water's surface. The beautiful scenery reminded Hinata that she had been to this place once before with Naruto during one of their late night outings soon after they had gotten married. The memories of their time together and the thought of never being able to see hi, again tore at Hinata from the inside and the feeling of sickness completely overwhelmed her entire body, making her violently throw up next to the lake. Her entire body was starting to shiver in pain and her emotional state was not any better. At that very moment, Hinata sensed serious danger and as soon as she activated her Byakugan, she saw that she was completely surrounded by what appeared to be an entire battalion of shinobi that were hiding within the trees. One of those shinobi came out of hiding and dropped down on the other side of the lake.

"Hinata Hyuga, given that you've already sensed our presence, I'm going to cut straight to the chase. We are an elite group of mercenaries, the very best in the Land of Fire that have been contracted by our client to eliminate you. That is the reason why we've tracked you so far. Understand that we do not hold any personal vendetta against you, but this is simply our job. We pride ourselves to have never failed an assignment, and for us to get our pay check, you will now have to disappear!" The leader of the mercenaries signalled to his entire squadron as they all got ready to initiate their attack.

Hinata had no time. She needed to do something and fast before it was all over for her. Even though her vision was wavering and her body throbbing in pain, she used every bit of her power to summon forth her other two halves to help her. An ethereal red leopard and a yellow tiger took form beside Hinata, but even they seemed to be in a severely weakened state.

"All three of us are here? The situation must be truly dire…" The Leopard said to the other two while doing its best to remain standing, given that she currently didn't even have a fraction of her true power.

"We have to survive…no matter what…in order to protect the child…" Hinata barely managed to utter out her words given the amount of pain she was in.

This time the tiger walked forward and stood in front of Hinata, and despite its severely hampered power, it still glared back at the enemies with a single-minded determination and murderous intent.

"I do not care what the cost, but if it is to protect the child…I WILL TEAR EACH AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU LIMB FROM LIMB IF NECESSARY!" The tiger screamed a warning at the enemy and let out a truly deafening roar that reverberated for miles throughout the forest and shook the very ground itself. The sound of the roar was so strong that it nearly tore the eardrums of every single enemy and left them completely disoriented. Unfortunately, the tiger had used to all of her power in that one move and collapsed on to the ground. Just as with the Leopard, she currently did not have anywhere near her true power.

To make matters worse, another wave of sickness overtook Hinata's body as she vomited severely once more, only this time she threw up a mouthful of blood. This caused Hinata to use her Byakugan to focus on her unborn baby and the sight scared her to the very core. Her body was going absolutely crazy and this was currently putting the child's life in great danger. Thus she focused every ounce of power she had on to the baby in order to keep it safe.

While the situation looked incredibly grim for Hinata, it was only about to get worse. A masked man wearing a dark cloak materialised out of thin air on the other side of the lake. Hinata instantly recognised him on sight, given that this man was the one who tried to kill her before and was the perpetrator behind the deaths of Naruto's parents. He was someone extremely dangerous and everything was about to get that much worse with his presence.

"Even though I hired these mercenaries to finish you off, I really didn't want to take any chances this time around. As they say, if you wish to ensure that a job is done, do it yourself. You may have survived last time, but this time the outcome will be very different." The masked man said to Hinata as he pulled out a sword from within his cloak. "I do have to give it to you though. At least you had the right idea to run away from the village unlike your idiotic husband. Unfortunately for you, I predicted you'd do something like this. You see, our power within the village is just too strong, and it'll only get stronger from here on out once we eliminate the last remnants of the Uzumaki."

Hinata was scrambling for dear life on the ground at this point. The torment her body was going through was nearly unbearable, but she just couldn't give up in order to protect her child.

The masked man laughed in joy while seeing Hinata writhe in agony. "It would appear the poison I mixed into your drink is starting to take its effect. I don't think you quite realise its lethality given that it is considered to be the deadliest in the world. The poison was difficult to acquire but certainly worth the effort. If you'd even take a sip of that drink, it'd be over for you within an hour. However, even though you didn't drink any and only spilled a small amount on to your skin, it is still devastating enough to have completely sent your internal systems into a state of utter chaos. If not for you channelling all of your powers to your child, I don't think it'd survive this ordeal. But the act of trying to protect your child has left you completely defenceless. To think that the one considered as the "prodigy of prodigies", one of the Hyuga's very best has been reduced to grovelling on the ground all for the sake of an Uzumaki. How ironic considering that the Hyuga were the ones who put the final nail through the Uzumaki's coffin."

"What?!" Hinata's eyes widened in disbelief at what she was hearing. "What are you talking about?"

"It would appear that the Hyuga have very selective memory, or they just choose to hide from their own past. A long time ago the Hyuga clan were the ones who stood alongside us at the forefront to burn the village of Uzushiogakure down to the ground and bring about the destruction of the Uzumaki clan. Given the work of those who came before you, the fact that you've been reduced to this pathetic state all for the sake of a child of Uzumaki heritage is an absolute disgrace to your ancestry!"

"Uzumaki…Hyuga…None of it matters! All that matters is that the life inside of me is my child and I'll do everything in my power to protect it, no matter the cost!" Hinata retaliated with all her heart.

"Then you will perish along with the last remnants of the Uzumaki." The masked man now unsheathed his sword and pointed it menacingly at Hinata.

This caused Hinata's two counterparts, the leopard and the tiger to bring themselves up on their feet with whatever little power they had left.

"My powers are fading…but I must do everything in my power to keep the child safe." The leopard said to itself.

"I will protect the child, even if it is with my body alone." The tiger also got ready to join the fray.

As the masked man charged across the lake and towards his target with his sword, Hinata's counterparts jumped in front of her in order to block the enemy from getting to her. However, in the blink of an eye the masked man disappeared from in front of them and teleported right behind Hinata to her blind spot.

"PRINCESS!" The leopard shouted in fear.

"TRUE SELF!" The tiger tried her utmost to help but she just didn't have anything left.

Hinata could barely even move her body at this point, but she did her absolute utmost to muster up every bit of strength necessary to turn around in order to block the incoming attack.

"It's no use! This is your execution! Now...BEGONE!" The masked man swung his sword in a wide arc and went straight for Hinata's head, who had somehow managed to manoeuvre herself around in order to face him despite the unimaginable suffering she was going through. But it was just too late.

At that moment between life and death, suddenly there was a tear in space itself between the two as a hand carrying a kunai appeared out of the rupture and blocked the masked man's attack. A second hand came out and grabbed the masked man's throat before finally the full body of a hooded man wearing a spiral mask appeared from within the rift.

"An Uchiha!?" The original masked man asked in shock. "Who are you!?"

"I am the Uchiha's ghost, Tobi, and you are coming with me! Mangekyou Sharingan!" Using his eyes Tobi created yet another rift in space and dragged himself along with the masked man through it. Once the rift closed behind them, Hinata was left by herself in a state of total confusion. But her struggle was not yet over.

"Now's our chance! FINISH HER!" The leader of the mercenaries ordered his subordinates and they rushed towards Hinata at once to put an end to her.

At that very moment, white chains tore out of the ground and tethered the leader dead in his tracks.

"ATTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!" A primal scream came from within the woods as a second group of shinobi jumped into the fray to engage the mercenaries as an all-out battle of utter chaos broke loose.

Hinata didn't know who this new group of shinobi were or what was going on, but a woman with distinctively long red hair landed in front of her.

"Are you okay dear?" The older woman asked ever so kindly while keeping the leader trapped using her extremely powerful sealing chains.

"Y-Yes, I'm better now." Hinata replied as she started to regain some of her energy. "But…who are you?"

"I guess you could call me a fellow mother who also once sacrificed everything to protect her child." The woman replied with a smile that for whatever reason reminded Hinata so much of Naruto himself. "Anyway, we'll take care of these guys. This is your chance to escape."

Although a chaotic battle ensued all around her, Hinata knew that an opportunity like this would not present itself a second time. Thus she thanked the woman and gathered up all her strength to run away into the hidden leaf forest once more with the leopard and tiger alongside her.

The sight of Hinata pushing herself to her absolute limits for Boruto warmed Kushina's heart as she was reminded of how she herself had put everything on the line in the past to ensure Naruto's safety.

"That's right Hinata. I leave the Uzumaki's legacy in your hands. I believe that you above everyone else will take care of it with your very life."

* * *

There you have it. The story of Naruto and Hinata's separation, or at least a part of it. There is still a lot more to tell in regards to the Uzumaki clan, who are an extremely important part of this story, and also this enemy faction. I'm curious to know who you support though. Do you agree with Hinata's decision to leave Konoha? Or do you agree with Naruto's decision to stay behind? Or maybe you don't want to take any side in particular? From my perspective, I did not write this story with either Naruto or Hinata being "correct" in mind. I always wanted to leave that up to all of you to decide on who you agree with, and hopefully make that a difficult decision. It is supposed to be a struggle between ideals (Naruto) and reality (Hinata).

From last time, as **Trainer1232, Hikari To Seimei, NaruHinaRyu, Deadly-DeathStar, Albert da Snake, Foreverlyheartbeat, jankitty13** mentioned, it was indeed Kushina that showed up in front of Boruto. But I bet you didn't expect her to reveal the truth to Boruto. Much more on her later.

A lot of questions and concerns raised about Houka last chapter and I will answer much of them in the upcoming chapters. But I do want to address one particular question - Can Naruto cheat on Hinata with Houka? I think I can best answer that question with a question of my own - Can Hinata cheat on Naruto with one of his clones? If your answer is no then the same is true for Houka because she's not much different from a clone. But I'll go into more detail on this later.

That is all I have today. This chapter is now officially the biggest one I have written so far. Let me know your thoughts as always and I will see you all next time.


	13. The Hero and the Conflicted

**The Hero and the Conflicted**

* * *

It took quite some time before Naruto finally finished fixing the metal door to his prison cell that Hinata had broken in earlier. The special handcuffs that were supposed to stop him from using any ninja arts had been shattered into pieces by her as well and there were no hopes of repairing these. Naruto let out a huge sigh as he sat down on to the uncomfortable jail bed, but there was no time for him to relax. There were just too many thoughts that were crossing his mind at once that made him restless.

"Darn it, the Mizukage really screwed me over big time. This is what I get for trusting that person!" Naruto exclaimed out of anger. After all his current situation came about as a direct consequence of the Mizukage's actions.

Since the era of the first Hokage, Konohagakure and Kirigakure had been locked in a fierce territorial conflict that had intensified in recent times. Due to the losses both sides suffered and the stalemate they were locked in, both Kages eventually came to the same conclusion of calling a truce in an effort to bring about an end to the fierce battles fought by the two sides. But due to Jiraiya falling sick ever since the beginning of the conflict perhaps as a consequence of his old age, he had entrusted Naruto with the highly important mission of acting as his emissary and delivering the message of agreement on the peace treaty set about by the Kages.

Naruto did as his mission required. He travelled to Kirigakure and spoke directly with the Mizukage on the Hokage's behalf and received the good news of Kirigakure agreeing to a ceasefire. The village's leader appeared to be rather kind and hospitable even amidst the turbulent times, so much so that it made him believe that despite the battles fought between the two villages, maybe one day the two nations could even form an alliance. Little did he know at the time how naïve he truly was.

Upon his return to Konoha to his absolute shock Naruto was captured and imprisoned on charges of high treason committed against Konoha. He had no idea what was going on and didn't know why his own village turned against him when he came bearing good news. He was left utterly confused. It was only when the Hokage came to secretly visit him in his jail cell late that night that he found out what had truly happened. Jiraiya explained to him that Kirigakure had broken the treaty that the two villages agreed to and that someone from within Konoha had tipped off the Mizukage on all the detailed locations of Konoha shinobi and their battle plans, which allowed the Kirigakure shinobi to launch an all-out assault on Konoha's forces, crippling it severely and leaving it in a losing state. To make matters worse, the Mizukage had openly announced that the one who had leaked all of Konoha's secrets and helped Kirigakure finally achieve the upper hand in the conflict was none other than Naruto himself.

At first Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing and was completely taken by despair, but Jiraiya assured him that he did not believe for a second that Naruto had betrayed Konoha. But the village elders and many others within Konoha were furious about Konoha's current state and wished to see Naruto incarcerated and punished for his actions. So Jiraiya requested Naruto to stay in prison for the time being until he was able to identify the real culprit and find a way to prove Naruto's innocence, since any defiance on his part would only make matters worse in the current crisis.

Naruto had thus far agreed to Jiraiya's request and stayed locked up in prison, but it was during this period that a pregnant Hinata had been attacked by the masked man. The life of his wife and unborn child was in serious danger and Naruto could sit still no longer. Hinata wanted him to run away from the village given the atrocious situation the two of them were currently in, but Naruto truly believed that despite the hardships he was facing at the moment, he could overcome the odds. All of his precious people resided in his village and over the years he had gained many friends that he trusted with his very life. Naruto just couldn't leave this village that his father wanted to protect with his very life and allow it be overtaken by the enemies from within. Thus he wracked his brain in order to find a way in which he could both save the village and protect Hinata at the same time. However within just a moment, his entire life changed as the memories of his shadow clone flowed back to him.

After their altercation earlier, Naruto had sent a shadow clone to watch over Hinata so that he could rush to her in case any further harm came her way. The clone was hiding out on the rooftops for some time and saw nothing out of the ordinary happening to Hinata within their house until it heard some weird noises from below. Being very on edge in order to ensure his family's safety, the clone rushed down only to find that the culprit was none other than a cat that knocked over a garbage bin. The clone felt silly as he returned back to its lookout once again and time passed on. However something felt a little bit off now and even though the lights were still on in the house, it felt empty. The clone decided to enter the house only to find that much of Hinata's belongings were missing from their bedroom. As he rushed through the house in search of his wife he found a small note lying on the dining table that simply read: "Farewell Naruto-kun".

The clone instantly dispelled and now the real Naruto dropped to his knees in absolute shock as he came to the realisation of what had just happened. Hinata had run away. She had left him behind. Naruto knew and understood that she was in a great deal of stress given the recent events but never in a million years did he imagine that she would actually abandon him, especially after the promise he had made to protect her and their child at all costs. Naruto's words were his bond and he meant everything he said to her from the bottom of his heart. He understood his current dire state within the village was certainly not favourable for either him or his family to say the least, but he believed that Hinata above all people would have had faith in him to overcome these odds, no matter how grim. Naruto felt betrayed beyond words given that Hinata was the one person who had always supported and believed in him at all times. But despite his rampaging emotions, he knew he had no time to waste wallowing in sorrow. He had to chase after her and bring her back at all costs, because a life without her, his one true family was not a life he could ever envision.

Naruto blasted open the door to his prison cell that he had spent the past hour fixing and rushed outside as fast as he could. This would probably be considered a crime of jail breaking but that was the least of his worries right now. Naruto was just about to start running when what appeared to be a huge explosion shook the entire village and left the Uzumaki in a state of disarray. He jumped up on to the nearest rooftop only to find that the Hokage tower had been completely demolished by a huge sphere of water that dropped down from above and exploded like a bomb, flooding the streets of Konoha and its residences. It didn't take long before the entire village was awake deep in the middle of the night and mass hysteria ensued as the streets of Konoha were filled with the cries of its inhabitants. Everything was devolving into utter chaos in a matter of minutes.

"Code Black! I repeat – Code Black! We are under attack from enemy forces! All civilians – make your way to the emergency evacuation zone at the rear end of the village immediately! All shinobi – please assist in the protection and evacuation of civilians as first priority!" Emergency announcements were being made across the entire village through sirens.

Naruto looked on to the streets below only to find a young couple with a new born baby struggling to make their way through the street that was now filled in waist deep water. But the situation went from bad to worse when a giant water shark broke through the nearest building and lunged right at the couple. The woman instinctively hunched over to protect her child while the man did the same over his wife in order to protect her and their child.

"Water Release: Water Dragon!" Naruto yelled as a large dragon formed out of the water below and collided with the shark, causing both to dissipate completely. "You two, now's your chance – RUN!"

"Thank you!" The couple wasted no time and started to move as quickly as they could.

As Naruto looked across the village, it was a scene of utter chaos that he had never seen before. He needed to run after Hinata but at the same time Konoha and its people were in dire straits. At that moment Naruto felt the all too familiar figure of his teacher drop next to him on the rooftop.

"I came here to get you out of your cell, but it seems you're already out. That is good because we have little time to waste." Itachi explained in a deeply concerned tone.

"Itachi what the heck is going on?!"

"From what we gather from field reports, it appears that a significant portion of Kirigakure's shinobi was retreating from the battlefield over the past few days. Our forces being on the losing side of the conflict thought that such a retreat may have been a sign of truce from Kirigakure and as such decided not to give chase. However it appears that Kirigakure has somehow managed to bypass those forces through our defensive line and has launched a surprise attack directly at the heart of our operations – Konoha. If I had to guess I would hedge a bet that whoever it was that leaked our secrets to the Mizukage and set you up as the traitor is the same individual who is behind this incident. There is a traitor within Konoha who also happens to be at a high position of power. Regardless, that is the least of our worries at this moment. Our main concern right now is the fact that the majority of our forces are still in the battlefields far away from Konoha, leaving very few shinobi left within the village to protect it and its civilians. This was not a situation we expected to be in."

Naruto was trying to get his head around the anarchy that was ensuing around him when Itachi received a call on his earpiece from one of his two brothers.

"Itachi, I have bad news. Kirigakure shinobi have launched a pincer formation attack. They have a very large group that is charging right through the front gates of Konoha and another group about half that size that is attacking us from the mountains behind the village where the emergency evacuation zone is. We'll need all the shinobi we have left to confront the group advancing from the mountains, which will leave the front of Konoha wide open for the larger group to waltz right through. At this rate we won't have enough time to evacuate the civilians safely." Shisui explained as hastily as he could given how precious time was at the moment.

"Hold your ground with the rest of the Uchiha and have all the other shinobi help in the evacuation process. Do not worry about the Kirigakure forces invading from the front – I'll take care of them myself."

"What?!" There was a brief pause followed by a question of disbelief from Shisui. "Have you gone crazy? I know you're strong but that is akin to a suicide mission. The larger group you'll be facing is being led by one of their renowned swordsmen. There is no way you can fight them headlong by yourself, especially with that man amongst their ranks."

"Perhaps I may not be able to win, but I should be able to buy all of you enough time to defeat the smaller enemy unit and escape with the rest. I know you are strong enough to do so Shisui."

"But what about you? I can't let you face the enemy all by yourself."

"Just as I believe in you, you should believe in your older brother as well." Itachi said in calm and collected tone as always. "I'll be okay."

"DARN IT! Fine…I'll put my faith in you Itachi. I'll be there as soon as the evacuation is complete and the enemy on this side is defeated. You better not let anything happen to you before then." Shisui ordered his brother before cutting the communication.

Naruto looked at Itachi in awe. "You were intending to fight all those enemies by yourself – you who were handpicked by the perverted sage to become his successor as the next Hokage? Your loyalty to this village never ceases to amaze me."

"It has always been my belief that the Hokage isn't just an individual who leads the shinobi of this village, but is rather someone that acts as the last line of defence of this village. That person is one who is willing to make any sacrifices necessary if it means the village and its people can be protected. I'm sure Lord Jiraiya right now would be fighting to protect this village with his own hands if not for the detrimental state of his health."

The words that Itachi spoke were ones that brought back the very last memories of his father and Minato's final words to Naruto: _"_ _Being the Hokage means that I'm not only responsible for leading the shinobi of this village, but also protecting them. I love this village with all my heart just as I love you, my one and only son. That is why I will defend this village with all I have."_

Those words had always been a source of inspiration and guiding light for Naruto. He wanted to live up to those words and keep the legacy of his father alive. He just couldn't allow the village that his father cared so much for be destroyed. As his mind drifted to the past, Itachi's voice brought him back again to the present.

"This village has certainly not been kind to you Naruto and after everything it has done to you I wouldn't hold it against you if you simply chose to leave it all behind when all hope may seem lost for this place. However, I want you to know why I rejected the offer to become Hokage before you make your decision." Itachi said to Naruto while looking off into the distance towards the entrance to the village. "It was because I believed that you were far more deserving of succeeding Lord Jiraiya as the Hokage than myself. You are the true successor of the Will of Fire that you've inherited from both your teacher and your father. That will to never yield in the face of overwhelming odds burns brighter within you than anyone else in this village, the same will that the previous Hokage possessed in spades. That is why it is my firm belief that you are the one who must become the Fourth Hokage and I promised myself that I would ensure such is indeed the case if you so wished. So my question to you now Naruto – what is it that you want to do?"

A smile appeared on Naruto's face for the first time as he had a simple and straightforward reply for the Uchiha. "I want to protect this village just like my father and teacher – two people I've always revered as the very best shinobi. And right now I will do whatever it takes to ensure the safety of Konoha and its people, no matter how dire the situation. Backing down has and never will be an option for me."

Seeing Naruto's unshaken resolve also brought a smile to Itachi's face. "Very well, it appears you're fully prepared. Then I feel as though this is finally the appropriate time for me to pass on the mantle to you. Over all these years I was the one who led our team through thick and thin, but from this point forth you shall be the one to take the lead and I will follow. It is only right. So Naruto, how do you want us to approach this situation?"

Naruto made one hand seal and the entire village as far as the eyes could see was filled with over a thousand shadow clones. There was almost not a single rooftop that Naruto did not occupy. He was ready to do battle and almost as though to signify that fact, lightning clouds loomed over Konoha. A storm was brewing.

"Leave the defence of Konoha to me. I will face them all head on with my shadow clone army. You do what you do best Itachi – hit the enemy leader from the shadows." The original Naruto ordered like a true leader.

"Very well then, together let us achieve victory for Konoha." Itachi gave one final nod before he disappeared within a moment's notice.

The main forces of Kirigakure now approached the gates of the village and it was time. Naruto along with his entire army of clones braced themselves to charge into an all-out conflict. Just outside of Konoha the Kirigakure shinobi stopped in their tracks in shock of the sheer number of clones they saw in front of their eyes. It was unbelievable. No one could ever create this many copies of themselves apart from Naruto.

It made one of the ninja from the front lines run to the back to address their leader. "Kisame-sama, our forces are outnumbered nearly 4:1. It would appear that Uzumaki Naruto has created nearly a thousand shadow clones in order to face us."

Kisame Hoshigaki was a man who was barely ever surprised due to the great experience he has accumulated in combat throughout his life, but even he was impressed. "Uzumaki Naruto…over the years that boy has become very interesting indeed. I think Samehada will have a great time devouring his powers."

As Kisame drew his sword from his back, he suddenly noticed a large number of crows flocking all around his perimeter. Instantly he knew what was happening and gave his troops an order. "Go forth with all of our forces and neutralise Uzumaki Naruto and his clones. No matter how many clones he may have, he is still one man. Our other unit that flanked from behind should also be joining you all shortly. NOW CHARGE!"

Kisame then dashed towards the woods where the crows were originating from and jumped from free to tree until eventually he came into a head on collision with his target. He swung his sword with unbelievable strength but it was stopped with one single kunai as the two combatants now struggled to overpower one another.

"Kisame Hoshigaki…" Itachi whispered in between his breaths. "For the sake of Konoha, you will fall to the Uchiha's might."

"Itachi Uchiha…" Kisame uttered with one of his unnerving grins. "You are a meal worthy of Samehada."

Thus the two renowned shinobi collided in a battle of unparalleled proportions. At the same time the rest of the Kirigakure shinobi charged into Konoha with full force to engage the one man that stood in their way with his great army.

" _It is my duty as a husband and a father to create a home in which all of us can live in peace. And today I will fight to create that home for the three of us. So just wait for me Hinata. Once I've saved this village I'll chase after you even if it is to the ends of the Earth, and I won't give up until I find you."_ Naruto promised to Hinata within his mind as he along with his clones thrust themselves into combat while the storm that was brewing finally came into full effect. "NOW CHAAAAAARGEEEEEEEE!"

Thus this day became famously known as "The Battle of the Storm" during which one man miraculously defended the village of Konoha by himself and along with the help of the remaining Konoha shinobi drove back the invading Kirigakure's forces. It was a victory that would become part of the history books for the generations to come. Naruto's selfless actions that night became chronicled as a tale of an undying will far across the Land of Fire, and as many vouched for his innocence during the Kirigakure incident, he was heralded as the great "Hero of Konoha", a title that would eventually allow him to become the Fourth Hokage.

However, while Naruto defended Konoha with all his might, elsewhere…

Deep within the hidden leaf forest Hinata was resting under a large tree, having somehow managed to escape the threat of the masked man due to the help of an unknown faction. She didn't know who they were but she was just glad that both she and her child were still alive. The effect of the poison was finally wearing off and both her and the child's conditions were stabilising. Even though they were both out of danger, the pain was still intense. However, it wasn't so much the physical pain that felt unbearable to Hinata, rather it was her mental suffering that affected her most. It wasn't easy leaving behind the family that she cared so much for – her father and sister who had always supported her throughout her life and the clan that she was raised within. The memories of her blood ties became a source of great agony for her. However above all else it was one man whose absence was the source of greatest torment for Hinata right now.

Leaving Naruto for good was not an act Hinata had ever considered in her wildest dreams. She had grown up alongside him and it was her wish to forever be there next to him. He was her childhood friend, her classmate at the academy, a teammate as part of the same squad, her one true love, her husband and now the father of her child. The ties that bound them together had been forged for nearly two decades since the time that the two were born, and perhaps even before that with their parents' friendship. Shattering those ties for Hinata was akin to breaking herself in half. She felt it simply could not be done, as it proved too much of a torture to overcome. Yet at the same time Hinata looked at the life inside of her – the life that came about as a result of the love that she and Naruto shared, and for the sake of that child Hinata would have to undergo this ordeal, the greatest pain she had ever suffered in her entire life. She would have to shatter her ties with Naruto.

Hinata's mind was splitting under the pressure of this dichotomy. She didn't ever want to leave Naruto, yet at the same time she would have to make that ultimate sacrifice in order to ensure the safety of their child given that Naruto refused to run away with her. The internal conflict tore at her very psyche with unbearable strain and for the very first time this was clearly reflected on her two counterparts – the Leopard and the Tiger.

However, the Leopard and the Tiger were not always as they were now. They originally came into existence many years ago when Naruto and Hinata first became part of Team Zero. Since they were part of the same squad, they often taught each other variations of their own techniques. Given that the shadow clone was Naruto's most used technique, he wanted to teach it to Hinata. But at the time she had difficulties performing the technique properly and since she wasn't an Uzumaki she could only create two clones at once. After some training Hinata finally managed to conjure up what could only be described as two "imperfect" clones when compared to Naruto. Although they had the basic traits as clones such as looking identical to Hinata and transferring all of their memories back to her when they dispelled, there were some major differences. First it was the fact that when they were summoned they only retained their own memories from all of their previous encounters as opposed to gaining all of Hinata's memories. Second when it came to their personalities, although they acted very much like Hinata, they had small behavioural quirks that favoured certain aspects of Hinata's personality, such as one of the clones taking more towards Hinata's gentle and peaceful side that disliked conflict while the other took more towards Hinata's Hyuga sensibilities that made her more willing to stand in battle in order to protect those she cared for. These two aspects of retaining their own memories and having small behavioural quirks gave Hinata's clones some individuality of their own in that they weren't exactly identical to one another. Because of this Naruto suggested giving names to the clones so that they could be easily identified, which Hinata thought was a great idea and asked him to do the honours.

Thus he named the clone that favoured Hinata's gentle and caring side "Houka", given her affinity towards Hinata's mastery of the fire style techniques. He named the other clone that favoured Hinata's brave and resilient nature "Yuki", due to her willingness to stand courageously in battle for those she loved. As years passed Hinata trained and further developed her clones to retain their individuality by giving them slightly different appearances from herself until eventually she combined her clone technique with that of her Gentle Step in order to create a new technique of her own that gave her two clones far more durability and transformations that resembled two more of the big cats – Houka being a Leopard that specialised in the Fire style and Yuki being a Tiger that specialised in the Earth style, while Hinata herself used Lion based transformations and lightning style techniques.

However, despite the individuality Houka and Yuki had developed over the years, they were still originally Hinata's clones and as such resembled her very closely in personality despite their minor quirks. That was until now.

As Hinata struggled within her mind about the decision she needed to make, that internal struggle was now being reflected within her counterparts. The part of Hinata that wished to remain by Naruto's side and wanted everything to go back to normal was imprinted upon Houka, while the part of Hinata that was willing to shatter all of her previous ties in order to ensure the safety of her child was imprinted upon Yuki. They had in essence become a physical manifestation of Hinata's conflicted mind and inherited the two halves of her troubled psyche. Thus for the very first time the two acted radically different from one another and as a result of the differing viewpoints they held, started to despise one another. It was a reflection of how Hinata hated herself no matter what decision she made, because either way she would end up betraying herself.

"There is no place for regrets." Yuki reminded Hinata in a stern tone. "You need to do what must be done in order to protect the child, even if that means shattering all ties that bind."

"Regrets? This path that you're about to take is filled with nothing but regrets, not only for you but also for the child eventually. That child deserves to know his father and grow up around him. Naruto deserves the same. How could you take all of that away from them both? Even if our circumstances right now may seem dire, you should believe in Naruto to rectify matters. He said it himself did he not that he would make everything right?" Houka tried her best to convince Hinata that there was still hope with Naruto.

"Ridiculous! The child's life cannot be put under such risk on the back of promises that cannot be kept."

"Naruto is a man of his words and he would never go back on them. He would do everything in his power to protect the child. There is no doubt in my mind about it!"

The arguments between the two heated to a melting point until eventually they appeared ready to tear each other apart. But Hinata who was already broken from all the mental and physical pain that she could take no more as she shouted "ENOUGH!" and stood up under the tree.

"That is enough." She repeated once more in an emotionless tone. "I've made my decision. I will go far away from Konoha where my past will not be able to find me or my child. That is the only way to truly ensure its wellbeing."

Houka was in shock. She couldn't believe Hinata was going through with this and desperately tucked on her garment in order to stop her. "Please don't do this. You must return to Naruto's side because that is what you truly want within your heart. YOU AND I BOTH KNOW IT TO BE TRUE!"

That is all Hinata could take as she outstretched her palm towards Houka and glared menacingly at her, stopping her from being able to move any longer. "I said ENOUGH! You may be a part of me but do not forget that I am the one who made you. You WILL listen to what I have to say whether you like it or not."

Although Hinata glared at her, Houka could see the regret deep within Hinata's eyes. After all the way Houka acted right now was proof of Hinata's regret of leaving the one she loved most, since Houka had inherited one half of Hinata's will.

"You are betraying me princess. But above all…you are betraying yourself." Those were Houka's final words before Hinata clenched her palm, causing the Leopard to disappear out of existence and withdraw within Hinata.

"You made the right decision for your own sake, but above all for the child." Yuki stated in a sombre tone, but Hinata did not reply as the two walked away deep into the forest and far away from Konoha.

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

"And so your parents separated despite the love they shared for one another. Even though the masked man had failed in his plan to bring about an end to your parents, he did manage to drive a deep wrench between the two of them, one that has persisted even to this day." Kushina explained to Boruto as sympathetically as she could, but the child had no words to say in response. "I understand this is a lot of information for you to digest Boruto. It would be for anyone, especially someone of your age, but I ask you to think everything through carefully before judging either one of you parents. I know it is difficult to face the truth, but only by confronting it can a person truly grow. You must do the same in order to eventually decide whose actions you support most. Is it your mother who for your sake was willing to sacrifice all that she ever had? Or is it your father who believed he could overcome all the odds in order to secure a better future for his family and everyone else? Or perhaps there is a path that can reconcile them both."

"I…don't know." Boruto could only reply with that one single statement.

"It's okay to not know. It'll take time before you find the answer you're looking for." Kushina broke up the serious mood by gently ruffling Boruto's hair. "I would love to stay and talk to you longer, but I'm afraid I'll have to take my leave for now. It was definitely a once in a lifetime experience to meet you and I'm glad I got to talk to you Boruto. But for now let's keep this meeting a secret between the two of us okay? I'm not sure your mother would take to the idea of you being involved with the shinobi very well."

The young boy nodded and now looked at his grandmother with hopeful eyes. "We will meet again right? This can't be the only time. I want to learn even more from you!"

"Of course, that goes without saying. There is a lot more I'd like to know about you too Boruto. So don't worry, we will meet again soon. So how about it, can your old grandma get a hug?" Kushina outstretched her arms towards Boruto with a huge smile and even though he hesitated for a moment, the boy responded by reciprocating her feelings as the two wrapped each other in a gentle embrace.

Little did Boruto know however that in the brief moments the two of them were hugging, Kushina performed several hand signs and placed a seal on his back. Once they separated, the two said their goodbyes and Kushina walked away into the woods until eventually she reached a tree behind which a man was waiting patiently for her.

"Mission complete. I've successfully placed the seal on Boruto. The rest is up to you now." Kushina informed him in a very serious tone.

"Are you sure that seal won't be discovered by his mother?" The man asked in response. "That could spell trouble for us."

"Don't underestimate the Uzumaki. We are experts of sealing techniques. Even someone like Hinata with eyes as keen as the Byakugan will not be able to pick up on such a subtle seal that easily. Besides, we're about 8 years behind schedule. It is about time we get our plan underway."

The man next to her clenched his hands in disdain towards himself. "If only my eyes hadn't failed me all those years ago. I was the one who was supposed to keep an eye out on her when she left Konoha, yet I completely lost track of her and she managed to disappear from our radar completely. We've only finally located them now after Naruto discovered their whereabouts. If only I hadn't failed back then…"

Kushina shook her head in disapproval. "It's not your fault, and what's done is done. As I said before, it's time we finally put our plan into action."

"You know, after all that is said and done, this plan will reunite Naruto and Hinata for sure…reunite them in their wish to absolutely decimate you."

Kushina smiled despite the grim outcome the man predicted. "If that is what it takes for the plan to succeed, then so be it."

* * *

That should wrap up Naruto and Hinata's backstories for now so that we can move towards the future where they come face to face with one another. Now that you know what happened between Naruto and Hinata, have your expectations changed as to what will/should happen when they meet? Not to mention Kushina and the Uzumaki will be big players in all of this.

From last time it was actually nice to see that there was no consensus behind who was correct. Some of you supported Naruto's decision, some of you supported Hinata and there were a lot of you who didn't side with either. As I said before, I personally didn't intend either one to be correct. It is up to you to decide. That being said I did want to create a conflicted Hinata in this story who is a combination of two parts. The kind and gentle Hinata just like the original we all know and love. Plus a determined and strong-willed Hinata that came about as a result of the hardships she went through. The Hinata of this story has a personality that is a combination of both, and her clones represent those two parts individually. That is why they seem to act somewhat differently from Hinata because they each represent one half of her. Their main purpose in this story is to demonstrate the internal conflict within Hinata and eventually her coming to terms with her own self. Besides helping out in battles and the like of course!

 **Guest 8, Misha, saiyanvegeta1648:** Hopefully this chapter elaborates more as to why Naruto wasn't there by Hinata's side at the time. He was facing a lot of troubles of his own being imprisoned and so on. He cares both for his family and the village and wants to protect everything. That's issue he had with Hinata in that after everything that happened to them she believed Naruto had to make choice.

 **NaruHinaRyu** : I absolutely agree with the one main point that Naruto was idealistic even in love and I tried to point this out last chapter. He never considered that Hinata would ever actually leave him. He just believed that she would have faith in his promise and stay with him as always. He's accustomed to that since he grew up seeing Hinata always support him. Anyway, thanks for the detailed review. They are as always very eye opening.

 **Maurice Elias A. Nigma** : Trust me, I love reading long reviews because it gives me more insight into what the reader is thinking while reading the story, which is VERY useful. It was interesting to read what your take was on Naruto and Hinata's perspectives were and I must thank you for taking the time to explain them.

 **jankitty13** : I can't wait until we get to the point where Naruto and Hinata meet each other again. I have some great plans for then. But before all of that can happen, I needed to get their backstories out there first.

 **Blackcurse11** : When Kushina said Hinata was the best person to protect the life inside of her, it was more from the perspective of one mother understanding the struggles of another since she went through something very similar before.

 **Chewie Cookies** : Yaaay, Chewie is back!

 **Hikari To Seimei, naruhinakiralacus** : Glad to see all of this wasn't straight up predictable. I like stories that are a bit unpredictable. And no, Naruto does not know Kushina is around.

 **Trainer1232** : You have asked some of the biggest questions in the story and unfortunately you'll have to wait for the answers. The suspense has to be built lol.

That is all I have for now. I look forward to reading your thoughts as always and until next time, be well :)


	14. The Truth That Lies Deep Within

**The Truth That Lies Deep Within**

* * *

Hinata stood in the middle of the forest close to her home. Her Byakugan was active and in just a moment she hit the tree trunk in front of her with a flurry of jabs. She did not stop either, going from tree to tree until she exhausted herself completely and dropped down to her knees. It had been years since the last time she had for fight, but ever since the day she confronted the Kumogakure shinobi Hinata regularly trained by herself at any given opportunity. Even if she didn't ever thirst for battle, she felt she needed to be fully prepared for the sake of her son, in order to protect him if the time ever came. For him she could afford no chances, no mistakes. Thus she once again pushed herself to the limits for the sake of the one she loved, just as she did long ago for Naruto.

At that moment Hinata noticed her son approaching their house through her Byakugan's extended field of view and quickly deactivated her eyes to go over and welcome him back.

"Boruto, son, you're back!" She exclaimed excitedly upon coming face to face with her son. However unlike every other time her son did not reply or sound as energetic as he usually was. It was also at this point that she noticed a small cut on one his cheeks. "What happened dear? Did you get hurt? Is everything okay?"

"Y-Yeah, everything's fine. I'm tired, so I just need to get some rest." Boruto quickly diverted the question and ran inside the house without ever making eye contact with his mother. He just didn't know how to face her after everything he had heard. Many conflicting emotions clouded his mind right now and he just wanted to be by himself.

Hinata was a bit worried by her son's sudden change in behaviour but remained outside for a bit to meet up with her other self.

 **Elsewhere…**

Houka was standing within the forest and contemplating how to approach her summoner. If Hinata were to dispel her, all of the memories of her meeting with Naruto would go back to her and it would lead to disaster. She was trying to think of a way to prevent this outcome when a certain memory came to the forefront of her mind.

 _A young Naruto and Hinata were sitting in the middle of a training field and watching their new teacher pace back and forth in front of them with an emotionless look on his face. This was one of their first training sessions with Itachi right after they became a team._

 _"So you succeeded in my first training exercise. Not only did you manage to recognise that you were caught in my genjutsu, but also managed to break free, albeit due to the clues I left within. Regardless, you've proven yourselves worthy. Perhaps you do have the potential that Lord Jiraiya so aptly speaks off. As such I intend to bring out those potentials from within the two of you, whatever they may be. However, there is much training the two of you must undertake and I have no intentions of being mellow. Is that clear?"_

 _"We wouldn't have it any other way!" Naruto yelled excitedly, to which Hinata nodded, his enthusiasm rubbing off on her._

 _"Very well, then in that case you should know from the onset what the purpose of our team is. We will be specialising in covert operations and espionage, very similar to your parents' team led by Lord Jiraiya. It doesn't need to be stated the effectiveness of their squad considering that the village has for the longest time considered the three of them the strongest team to have ever existed. Lord Jiraiya's reconnaissance capabilities combined with Hiashi Hyuga's extensive vision was a truly potent combination. Add on top Minato Namikaze, who was exceptional at nearly any task he was assigned and you have a team that has been unparalleled in their feats." Itachi's account of their parents filled both Naruto and Hinata with pride, but those feelings were quickly cut short. "However as your parents' their successors, your team will overtake theirs. I intend to settle for nothing but the best. That is why your very first training exercise will be to overcome your weakness of genjutsu."_

 _Naruto and Hinata couldn't help but feel the intensity behind Itachi's words. He was a calm and collected man, but when he spoke there was always an aura around him that almost made him feel untouchable, as though he were someone beyond your reach. Regardless, the two could only continue to nod in agreement._

 _"Now as you saw when you were captured within my genjutsu, an expert user can create an illusionary world so close to reality that it may not even feel as though you've been caught by their technique. In the case of my Sharingan I can even steal information from my victims with ease. That is why one of the first things you must learn in the line of covert ops is to be able to protect information, your memories if you will. Today I'll teach you a technique I learned from a Yamanaka under my command a long time ago, a member of a clan that specialises in the manipulation of the mind. With this you will be able to seal away small pieces of memories for a certain period of time that you may not wish for others to find out. This will be of paramount importance in the missions to come, so pay attention and learn quickly._

Thus Houka remembered one of the very first techniques Itachi had taught his students and with it intended to seal away her encounter with Naruto for the time being and try to smooth out the memory such that Hinata would not get suspicious.

"Once I go through with this I won't remember my meeting with Naruto-kun either until I see him once again, which will be the trigger that unseals the memory. Of course if the princess were to meet him herself then the memory would unseal as well and she would know that I had met with Naruto-kun earlier, but at that point if they came face to face it wouldn't matter if she found out that I met Naruto-kun." Houka thought everything through in her mind. "I'm sorry princess…I know I'm betraying you, but this is because you've been betraying yourself for the past 8 years. You've been holding in the pain of separating from Naruto-kun with the justification of protecting Boruto. But you know deep inside that you wish to be by Naruto-kun's side no matter how dire the situation. That is the place where you belong and as such that is also the place where I belong. I'm just acting in accordance with what you truly desire, because after all…I am you."

Thus Houka carefully sealed away her memory of Naruto temporarily and once again transformed back into her Leopard form to return back home. Sure enough Hinata was waiting outside of the house and near one of the trees to meet with her counterpart.

"Houka, you're back! I've been waiting for you. Did something happen to Boruto? He seems to be acting a bit weird?" She questioned with concern clear in her voice.

Houka was a bit caught off guard by the inquiry. She didn't know that Boruto had met Kushina since she was with Naruto at the time, so she made up something on the spot. "I-It's nothing really. He just got into a little scuffle with one of his friends in regards to his father."

"I see…" Hinata's face lost all of its light after hearing of the incident. This wouldn't be the first time Boruto was upset about the lack of information about his father, but it didn't become easier with each successive time either. Hinata had been thinking deeply about this ever since the attack of Kumogakure shinobi and she felt she could no longer keep evading the matter. "Houka, I want you to stay active for the foreseeable future and keep an eye out on Boruto. I also want you to be on the lookout for any activities of Konoha and Kumo ninja. Although the last encounter worked out in our favour and we received special exemption from the Hokage himself, I am still concerned and it doesn't hurt to remain vigilant. So for the time being I won't recall you. Please observe and report back to me of anything suspicious."

"Indeed, I agree with your assessment. We should remain cautious and I shall do as instructed." Houka nodded and even though she didn't remember her meeting with Naruto at this moment due to her memory being sealed away, Hinata's decision would allow her to help Naruto as necessary without running into suspicion. Thus she took her leave and blended back into the forest in order to continue her reconnaissance mission.

Hinata was left by herself to contemplate the situation but the more she thought about it the more it pained her inside, especially the memories of a certain someone that was the root of all these issues. Despite this she knew that standing around and twiddling her thumbs wouldn't solve anything. Thus she made her way inside to talk to her son. Little did she know however that her son was going through his own internal struggles after learning the story behind his parents' separation. She found Boruto coming out of the shower as soon as she entered the house and greeted him with a gentle smile.

"Boruto, dear, please come over here so that I can treat that cut of yours." She called to her son ever so kindly as she went over to the kitchen and got out the first aid kit.

"It's fine. This is no big deal." He replied and was about to go into his room when Hinata caught up to him and kneeled down in front of him, putting the box down beside her.

"No matter how minor it is we should still treat the cut just to make sure it doesn't get infected." Despite her son's unwillingness, Hinata applied a disinfectant on the wound and placed a band aid on top of it. "There we go. That wasn't so bad now was it?"

Every second Boruto was face to face with his mother, he was reminded of all the secrets she had kept from him, not only about his father, not only of herself but of who he truly was. Her eyes reminded him of the heritage that he was never even aware of, even though it had always been right in front of him. Boruto felt a sort of disdain towards his mother that he had never felt before and it ate at him inside. The young boy was at a loss and just didn't want to be near his mother at all. He was starting to hate himself for having such feelings.

"Boruto, arguments are a natural part of friendships, but you should always try to play nice and make up with friends as soon as possible afterwards. I understand that there are naturally a lot of questions surrounding your origin and your…father…but still, try to get along with everyone okay?" Hinata requested, which only happened to frustrate Boruto even further. How could she ask him to just accept everything when she made no effort in informing him of the truth? Just as he turned around to leave for his room, Hinata gently grabbed his hand to stop him. "I've made your favourites today. So how about we have some food? I've waiting for you the whole day so that we could eat together."

Boruto unceremoniously forced his hand away from his mother and rushed off to his room after replying: "I'm not hungry!"

No matter how much Hinata tried to rectify the situation, it only seemed to be getting worse. She could feel a rift developing between herself and her son every time the topic of his father came up and it only got progressively worse. If matters were left as they were right now, the final result would not be pretty. Hinata sat in place and contemplated on what she could do to solve this. The last thing she wanted was to lose the one she cared for most dearly a second time. The pain of separation from Naruto still lingered on within her even to this day and that wound would probably never heal in its entirety. She didn't want to add on to that suffering any further. Thus after a very long period of deep thought Hinata went into the kitchen to serve some of Boruto's favourite food items on to several bowls and carried them over to his room in a tray. She hoped to reinvigorate the mood between them with the food that she cooked for him with love.

When Boruto heard his mother come into his room he instantly pulled the blanket over his head. He was seriously starting to loathe her presence for everything that she hid from him. He just did not want her around right now as anger and resentment filled him to the core.

"Now Boruto, I get that you're upset but don't be like that. I worked so hard to make all of this food for you, so come on – let's eat this together." Hinata was at Boruto's bedside and was about to put the tray on the side table when her son suddenly emerged from within his blanket and slapped the tray off of his mother's hand, causing all the bowls of food to drop all over the floor with a deafening crash.

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU I'M NOT HUNGRY! WHY ARE YOU SO PERSISTENT?! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE RIGHT NOW! GET OUT OF MY ROOM ALREADY!" He shouted back at her in a venomous tone before pulling the blanket over his head once more.

He was expecting his mother to scold him severely and punish him for his actions, but as time passed nothing happened. His mother didn't even say a word and he could only hear her gathering up the pieces of the broken plates. This prompted Boruto to lift his blanket ever so slightly over his head in order to take a look at her and what he saw shocked him to his very core. As she cleaned up the mess he had made all over the floor, tears rolled down his mother's face as though there was no tomorrow. The look on her face told everything one would need to know about how much pain and sorrow she was currently feeling.

"W-What? You aren't going to punish me?" Boruto asked desperately, hoping that his mother would get angry at him, which would be far better than seeing her in tears.

Hinata on the other hand was close to breaking down completely, but she held herself together as best she could and smiled at her son so as not to worry him. "Of course not. I'm sorry for bothering you dear. You did tell me that you weren't hungry. I should've listened. It's my fault."

A gut wrenching sensation overtook Boruto as he watched his mother clean up after him as tears continued to roll down her face uncontrollably. An intense feeling of guilt overtook him as he realised what a terrible thing he had done to his mother. The same mother who gave birth to him, raised him and did her utmost to bring him happiness at all times all by herself. The same mother who had sacrificed everything for his sake – even the love of her life. He realised that even if she did hide his origin from him, she did it all to protect him. She always had and still continues to think about his happiness and wellbeing above herself. As Boruto saw his mother leave his room in tears because of him, he felt like an absolute piece of trash for repaying all of her sacrifices with such blatant disrespect. Before long without even his own realisation Boruto could feel something warm rolling down his cheeks. As he touched his face, Boruto realised that he too was crying.

 **Several hours later…**

Given the grim atmosphere in the house, Hinata had decided to call it a day very early and went to bed. But of course, sleep was not a luxury she could ill afford at this point in time. Hinata felt lost. She knew very well that such a day would come where Boruto would question his very origin, but she didn't know how to answer those questions. Because to answer those questions would mean confronting her own past. The very past that she ran away from. She just didn't know if she had it in her to relive that past and the pain that accompanied it

As she was deep in thought, Hinata heard the door to her bedroom creak open and her son peek his head in.

"Kaa-chan, are you awake? Can I…sleep with you tonight?" He asked in a truly remorseful and pleading tone.

It was almost as though hearing her son's voice lifted the great weight that was on Hinata's soul. He had after all always been the solace to all of her anxiety. "Of course son. You're the one who wanted to have a separate room of your own. If not for that I'd love for the two of us to sleep together whenever you wished."

Although Boruto insisted that he get his own room due to him wanting to feel like a grown up, he would still often times sneak into his mother's room to sleep together with her. The peace that he felt when next to her could not be described in words. He would sleep most soundly when it was beside his mother, and tonight was no different as Boruto snuck under his mother's blanket and buried his face deep into her chest. All that anxiety and restlessness he felt ever since he heard of his parents' story faded away into the background as a sense of everlasting serenity overtook all of his concerns. Boruto finally came to the realisation that no matter what may have happened between his parents, the fact that his mother meant the world to him did not change. His mother loved him with all his heart and he loved her right back. That would always be the same. As such he did not want to see her suffer through any pain ever again.

"I hurt you again didn't I? I'm sorry." Boruto apologised with all his heart.

"You don't have to ask for forgiveness Boruto. There is a myriad of truths that I kept from you. I've been thinking about this ever since the day you were born and I believe it is time you finally started learning of the truth. It is only right." Hinata said to Boruto as she hugged him close to herself. "Your father, Boruto, is a man named Uzumaki Naruto."

Boruto's eyes widened in absolute disbelief. For the very first time in his life, his mother spoke of his father and the name matched up with what his alleged grandmother had told him earlier.

"It may seem as though I changed your last name from your father's, but that is actually not true. In reality your father's original name was Namikaze Naruto, which was later changed to Uzumaki Naruto. I thought I had shattered all my ties with him when I left at an early stage of my pregnancy. But in the end I couldn't quite do it and gave you his original family name. That's how much your father meant to me."

Everything his mother said was matching up to what his grandmother had told him and it left Boruto in shock.

"I'm sorry Boruto but that is all I can tell you for now. I hope you'll understand that this is very difficult for me, revisiting a past that I once ran away from. So please give me some time to eventually reveal to you the whole truth." Hinata requested in a deeply distressed tone. "However, I do want you to know one thing. You are not and you will never be an unwanted child, not from my side and neither from your father's. Because after all you are the manifestation of the deep love we shared for one another."

Thus Hinata finally began to share with her son all that laid dormant within her heart.

* * *

Did you pinpoint the truth the title of this chapter referred to? Because that truth will eventually play a big part in defining Hinata's side of the story. Other than that I wanted to delve a little more into Hinata and Boruto's relationship, which I've tried to make into something special and filled with the "feels". I should say though that I'm very happy with the general reception to the whole story behind Naruto and Hinata's separation. From reading your reviews it seems that there is no consensus on who is right or wrong. There is almost a 50/50 split between the two of them, which is what I had hoped for. I will say this much that eventually both sides of the argument will be answered.

Now to answer some of your questions/comments:

 **HyugaVault** : I should point out that Naruto although very powerful (he is a Kage after all) is a lot more grounded in this story. His powers come from his lineage and the hard work he did alongside Hinata under Itachi's tutelage. And yes, the ones working in the shadows will come to the forefront eventually and their motivations will become clear.

 **NarHina** : I'm happy that you at least understand Hinata's side of the story. You don't have to think she is right as long as you can see where she's coming from. Neither Naruto or Hinata is supposed to be perfect in this story. They just have their own viewpoints which you may or may not agree with.

 **Albert da Snake** : There is a lot more to Kushina's story. I didn't just incorporate her on a whim. She will play a pivotal role in the plot.

 **guooos** : An interesting proposition. We shall see if that is true *evil grin*.

 **Trainer1232** : Oh darn lol you keep bringing up these interesting questions that I want to answer right away, but the story has to develop a little more before I can do so.

 **Blackcurse11, Guest 8** : Well, there has to be conflict for there eventually to be a big payoff. Right now the motivations behind a lot of parties are still not quite clear, but eventually everything will *hopefully* make sense.

 **Firechick89, Reading Pixie, Hikari To Seimei, Keiren-Kun89** : Thank you, I really do appreciate all of your nice comments :)

 **Beatrizmar** : As much as I'm glad you enjoyed this story, please don't lose any more sleep over it haha. I am one who can always appreciate a good night's sleep lol.

That is all for today. As always let me know your thoughts and I will see you all next time.


	15. The Enemy Within

**The Enemy Within**

* * *

 **The next morning…**

Hinata and Boruto were currently sitting at the dining table and eating breakfast together, which happened to be the leftover favourite food of Boruto's that Hinata had cooked for him yesterday. Having overcome their brief altercation from last night and sharing a heartfelt moment, both mother and son were back to enjoying a fun weekend together.

"Wow, this is as delicious as always! I can't get enough of it!" Boruto cried out in joy as he stuffed his face full of food.

"Now Boruto, don't just fill your mouth to the brim with food like that, and don't talk while chewing." The inner mother inside of Hinata gently scolded her son.

But Boruto was just enjoying his food too much to stop, making Hinata's warnings fall to deaf ears. And sure enough as the young boy tried to gulp down way more than his throat could handle, he started to choke on his favourite food.

Seeing the situation unfold, Hinata instantly got up from her chair and moved behind her son, holding his chest with one hand and hitting his back with her other palm multiple times so as to help him cough up the excess food. She then helped him to a glass of water to clear his airway.

Once the situation was nullified, Hinata sat back down on her chair and sighed a deep breath of relief. "See, what did I say? You shouldn't stuff your face with food like that. Listen to what mama has to say, okay?"

"But it's just so good…"

"I'm glad you're enjoying your food dear but please do so calmly. Not to mention, savouring your food will allow you to enjoy it even more."

"Haaaai." Boruto finally sounded his agreement and the two went back to merrily eating their breakfast while having their usual chitchat.

Eventually after finishing their meal Hinata went into the kitchen to clean up the dishes while Boruto sat on the countertop next to her. This was his opportunity to tell his mother about what Naruto asked him to tell her during their training session.

"You know Kaa-chan, yesterday I came across the man who helped you out when you were hurt."

"Oh, is that so? How is the gentleman doing? Has he been acclimatising to this village and his new accommodation?"

"About that, he actually requested for a small favour from you."

"What might that be?" Hinata asked with a bit of surprise in her tone.

"He asked if you could visit his manor today. He had something to tell you. I really think you should visit. Pleaaaase!" Boruto gave Hinata the dreaded puppy dog eyes which he knew was super effective against her in most occasions, and this time was no different.

Apart from her son's pleading, Hinata saw no reason to deny the offer. She still hadn't met the person that came to her aid when she was injured and gave Boruto support. She needed to thank him for his benevolence and at least hear his request to determine if it was something she could entertain.

"Very well, we'll leave after I clean up the rest of the dishes."

Boruto pumped his fist into the air in joy for having succeeded in convincing his mother to visit his father's mansion unbeknownst to his own knowledge.

Sure enough, not too long from then, both mother and son left their house together and took the long yet scenic route together through the forest towards the hill on the other side of the village where the mansion was located. Hinata had heard of the place before but never actually had an occasion to visit it, so the sight of the huge manor came as quite a shock to her, given that there was nothing quite like it anywhere in the village. She could only wonder how well off the person living in the place would be financially.

As the two stood in front of the two massive front gates, Boruto brought out a set of keys and handed it to his mother.

"Wait, you have the keys to this place?" Hinata was surprised to say the least.

"Yeah, the person who lives here told me that he wouldn't be home today, so he gave me the keys so that we could get in."

"Wait, so he isn't home? Actually, even more so than that, he actually gave you the keys to his entire mansion? That's a bit ridiculous. What did I tell you about not taking things from strangers?"

"He's not a stranger at this point. He helped you when you were hurt remember? Not to mention he said that he trusts me and entrusted the keys to me so that we could get in. He's not home today but he mentioned leaving a message or something for you in the dining room."

Hinata was going to lecture Boruto further about the accepting such an important item from someone so casually but realised that what was done was done. For now given that the owner himself entrusted Boruto with the keys and invited them in, she'd at least go in and take a look at his message. Thus she used the keys her son gave her to enter the mansion.

It was just as big inside as it looked from the outside. In fact, it might have just been even bigger than it initially appeared. The foyer itself that one stepped into from the doorway was very well decorated and winding stairways on both sides led to many bedrooms upstairs. For now though their destination was the dining room, which was on the ground floor straight ahead of them according to Boruto. Thus they walked straight and followed the path and sure enough reached a sizeable room with an absolutely gigantic oval shaped dining table situated at the centre that could house way more people than a group that would probably ever eat any meal together. Hinata walked over to the head chair located at the furthest end of the table, clearly meant for the master of the house and sure enough there were two envelopes placed on the table in front of it. One of those had the line "Please read this first" written on it.

So Hinata did as instructed and opened up the envelope to read the letter inside.

 _Dear Hinata-san,_

 _If you're reading this letter then that would mean young Boruto has delivered to you my invitation and you graciously accepted. For that you have my humble gratitude. It is very unfortunate that I could not be there to welcome you as I have some important work related matters to tend to this weekend, but please do make yourself at home. Regardless, just by having been in contact with your son for the few opportunities I've had, I can tell you're nothing short of a great mother. You should be proud of the son you've raised, for he is one of the most intelligent and benevolent children I've ever come across. Not to mention, it was certainly heart-warming to see how deeply he cares for you – his mother. I'm glad to have had his company in the few occasions that facilitated it and I'd like to thank you for allowing him to show me around the village when I had no one else to rely on to do so._

 _Anyway, I didn't simply write this letter for the purpose of idle chitchat. There was a somewhat important matter I wished to address to you. I do apologise if this may seem nosy, but I've recently heard from young Boruto that due to the injuries you sustained earlier, you were unable to pursue a new employment opportunity that was presented to you. I am terribly sorry for such unfortunate turn of events, but at the same time I cannot help but feel that this whole ordeal may have ultimately turned out to be beneficial for me, as terrible as it may sound. You see, the mansion that you are currently in is a place that I rented out as a side house that I visit every once in a while mostly to relax but also to get some work done in peace, since the area around the mansion and the village in particular are rather peaceful. However, since I am a busy man I seldom have the opportunity to visit that mansion and even less keep it well maintained. So that is where I was hoping you could come in._

 _I was looking for a trustworthy person that I could entrust that mansion to who would become its caretaker of sorts and I feel that there is none more trustworthy than yourself in my eyes. Just from having interacted with your son I can tell that you are one who is diligent and hardworking, for your son has most certainly taken after you in those regards. If I could entrust my place in your hands, that would put me at peace and save me the troubles of having to look for another person for the job. I only ask for you to visit the mansion once a week and do the basic household chores that you'd do for your own place. I was thinking how I was in need of a chef as well, but once again since I'm not frequently living there it would be difficult to find someone on such an interim basis. Therefore, I was hoping that you could perhaps act as a chef of sorts for me too. It doesn't have to be as extravagant as it may sound. I would be very content if you were to cook some extra of whatever you normally cook for yourself and your son at home and leave a few meals worth of food at the mansion before the weekend._

 _Of course for all of your troubles I will be paying you as your employer. In the second envelope you will find a month's worth of your wages in advance. I should highlight one very important point however – the amount you will be paid is non-negotiable. I will not pay you any more or any less on a monthly basis than what is included in the envelope. Please take a look inside to ensure that you are happy with what I'm offering. If you are to take the money, then I will assume that you have accepted my terms of employment and I would like for you to start work effectively immediately beginning next week. You can keep the keys that I gave to your son. I normally visit over the weekend, so if you could make the day that you work any one of the weekdays then that would be of great benefit to me. I will leave you to decide the time of your work, so feel free to visit the mansion whenever you feel like doing so. The place is empty on all weekdays._

 _Finally, thank you very much for reading until the end of this letter. I hope I've managed to at least interest you in this offer for a part-time work. I hope it will be of benefit to you financially. But above all, it will be most certainly be of the greatest benefit for me to be able to entrust you with the caretaking of my house, for you are certainly a person that I can place my trust upon._

 _I sincerely hope you will accept my offer and I wish both you and young Boruto the very best._

 _Kind regards,_

 _Menma Arashi._

Hinata finally finished reading the rather long letter and was a bit taken aback by the content. Little did she expect it to contain a job offer. She was a bit heartbroken when she had lost her new part-time job due to her recent injuries, but to think another opportunity would present itself in such a sudden manner was a bit unbelievable to her. The work seemed straightforward enough – clean the mansion once a week and cook a few meals worth of extra food and leave it at the refrigerator for whoever lived here over the weekend. But Hinata didn't know what to make of all this. Regardless, she decided to open up the second envelope to see the monetary offer that was being made to her and whether it was worth it.

The money that came out of the envelope widened her eyes in shock. She counted and recounted until she was certain that the amount was about 4 times the total she earned on a monthly basis from her bakery. All this for only 4 days of work in an entire month. Hinata would basically be earning an entire month's worth of salary in one day from this job. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"What do you think Kaa-chan? Do you think you can take the job?" Boruto asked with a hopeful look in his eyes.

"So you brought me here knowing about this all along. I just don't know about this Boruto…"

"Come on, please, you gotta help him out. He needs someone he can trust. He helped us when we needed it, so why not return the favour? Come on Kaa-chan, pleaaaase!" Boruto was now at the point of pulling on Hinata's garment as he desperately begged her to accept.

Hinata looked at the letter in her hand and then at her son's face. Although all of this seemed almost a bit too oddly convenient, she knew that given the pay, accepting the job would essentially bring an end to their financial constraints and allow her to fulfil many of her son's wishes that she couldn't do before, as well as being able to spend more time with him in the long run due to her workload being lessened at the bakery. Thus after much contemplation she looked at her son and nodded her head.

"Fine, I'll take the work and see how it turns out. Although I would have liked to speak with him face to face before accepting such a proposition, he seems like a nice enough person from what you speak of him. So I'll give it a shot."

Boruto jumped for joy and skipped around the huge dining table for being able to convince his mother to accept. To see her happy would make him happy as well.

"Alright, as celebration for finding a new part-time employment, what do you think the two of us go out sometime? We haven't had any excursions together as of late due to how busy I have been with work but I hear that there is a festival that is going to take place in a village not too far from here in two weeks' time? What do you say Boruto, you wanna go there with mama?"

Boruto's eyes lit up at his mother's suggestion and he replied with a resounding "YES!" before grabbing his mother's lower half in a bear crushing hug.

Hinata couldn't help but smile as she patted her son's head. To see him happy was what made her truly happy and this work would allow her to provide for him even more. Thus, unbeknownst to Hinata's knowledge, she became employed by her own husband. To Naruto the work was irrelevant. Yes he needed someone to keep an eye out on the mansion while he wasn't there, but more importantly he wanted to help alleviate his family's financial woes. He knew that he couldn't just give money directly to Boruto or Hinata as it would raise her suspicion. So he thought up an elaborate plan in which he would essentially give a sizeable chunk of money to his family under the guise of employing his wife. And so far the plan was working out well.

 **Elsewhere in Konoha…**

In a meeting room within the Hokage's tower, the most important members of the village were currently gathering and taking their seats around a roundtable. All the leaders of Konoha's renowned clans and their potential successors were present in this meeting that the Hokage himself had called. The heavy atmosphere in the room caused by the presence of such powerful shinobi would tell anyone and everyone that something very important was about to happen here. Seldom did all the leaders of Konoha's clans gather under one roof, but if anyone had the authority of bringing them together, it was Naruto himself.

Two generations of Ino-Shika-Chou were currently sitting around the table, Shikamaru taking his position beside his father, fulfilling his role today as the next in line to succeed his father as opposed to his usual work as the Hokage's advisor. Beside them there were Shino and Kiba along with their father and mother respectively who represented the Aburame and Inuzuka clans. Making the atmosphere twice as heavy than what it would have been was Danzo of the Shimura clan, one of the oldest and most respected of Konoha, along with his son and future successor – Sai. Danzo was a very old man and many expected him to have long retired from his position as village elder by this point, but it was his age and experience that made him the influential individual that he was. Although one look from Danzo was enough to unnerve most individuals, there was another person present in the room that could outdo even him in that regard with his clan's signature glare. But luckily Hiashi Hyuga currently had his eyes closed as though he were almost in a state of meditation and his younger daughter also had her gaze lowered to follow suit with her father. Konohamaru was sitting at the table with his uncle Asuma, but he was more busy stealing glances at Hanabi than paying much heed to the rest of the clans present.

To close off the attendance record of the clans invited to this event, the leader of what many considered the strongest clan in Konoha, Fugaku Uchiha arrived at the scene with his youngest son Sasuke. Their appearance was enough to draw the attention of every single person present in the room as even Hiashi opened his eyes to glance sideways at the Uchiha's leader. If any clan was in contention with the Hyuga for being the strongest in the village, it was most certainly the Uchiha, even more so due to the fact that both clans wielded ocular powers renowned far and wide across the ninja world.

To have the leaders of two such clans in one room along with so many other powerful clans was a feat only Naruto was capable of, and picking the perfect moment once everyone was in attendance, the man who led all the aforementioned clans and the shinobi of the entire village itself – Naruto Uzumaki appeared and walked over to the front of the room, his father's haori with the word "Fourth" etched on the back gracefully fluttering in his wake as he took a seat at the Hokage's chair. Thus the meeting was underway.

"To start off allow me to thank you all for answering my call and attending this meeting. I understand that it is the weekend and you all have your own personal matters to tend to, but what I wish to address is of paramount importance. So I hope you will excuse me for the sudden invitations that were sent out." Naruto stated to everyone in a very formal tone, one that fit his position as the Hokage, even though many of the people in front of him were close friends from his Academy days. "Anyway, I have been hoping to address all of you formally for some time now ever since I became Hokage not too long ago, given that all of your clans are the very backbone of this village. However, taking over the duties as the new Hokage has been an all-consuming task that has hindered me from doing so. But I believe with the current situation that is developing we can no longer sit idly by and watch another disaster unfold. As such I will make this short, cut right to the chase and speak to all of you about the matter directly, face to face."

Everyone could sense the urgency in Naruto's tone and were now paying very close attention. They knew that the Hokage did not call them out for idle chitchat, but this sounded even more serious than most of them expected.

"Not too long ago we found traces of an individual within Konoha who may have been in secret contact with the Raikage in Kumogakure. So I assigned some of my ANBU on an undercover mission where they tracked this person all the way to the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. Sure enough this individual was exchanging a message with several Kumogakure shinobi, but our forces intervened. A huge battle broke out between the two groups but ultimately our group with the backup from more units was able to defeat those from Kumogakure and retrieve the scroll directed to the Raikage. Our worst fears were confirmed as the message spoke of a potential coup d'état from within Konoha and having the Raikage lending the strength of his village to make this plan an actuality. There were quite a few other secrets of our village that were being leaked through this message as well. Unfortunately, the perpetrator escaped our grasp due to Kumogakure's intervention and was careful not to leave any traces of themselves within the scroll, as we have not been able to find any clues about their identity despite extensive forensic analysis. Regardless, it goes without saying after these current events that there is a person or a group of people within Konoha who are exposing our secrets to external parties. We have reason to believe that this may be the same individual that leaked vital information about our forces to the Mizukage in the past that almost led to the invasion of Konoha. They may now be attempting something very similar but this time with the Raikage. And if do not act swiftly we may end up with yet another incident similar to that from 8 years ago that almost led to the end of this village as we know it."

Everyone in attendance had a look of shock on their faces, some more so than others, but still shocked regardless by the gravity of the situation. The invasion of Konoha was still an event that had left scars on many of the inhabitants of Konoha and it was one that was almost entirely perpetrated by a single traitor in a position of power within Konoha. The worst part was that this individual was never actually caught and the fact that they may be back at it again was a thought of nightmares. This person was not to be taken lightly.

"Are you serious? You're predicting that we could actually be heading towards another event as devastating as the one from 8 years ago?" Sai was the one to bring up the first question that was in everyone's mind.

"Indeed, as a worst case scenario that is where all of this may be headed from the information we've deciphered thus far."

"If matters are as severe as they sound, have you considered any course of action?" Shukaku, one of the greatest strategists of Konoha, asked Naruto.

"Indeed I have, and that is the reason why I've gathered you all here. As I mentioned earlier, we MUST find the identity of the traitor amongst us at all costs before it is too late. To do so I've decided to place the entire village under ANBU surveillance effectively immediately. Every shinobi's actions within and outside of the village will be closely monitored from the shadows by the ANBU and reported directly to me. That means all of you are no exceptions either. I hate to say this and this is by no means personal, but you're all unfortunately the prime suspects since the clans of Konoha are the ones who hold the most power within the village."

Naruto's statement was like a bolt from the blue given its connotations, and it stirred up an immediate response from quite a lot of the attendees.

"Don't you think that's a bit…extreme?" Asuma questioned out of concern.

"I must agree with him in this regard. I understand that you need to take actions but to put all of the clans within the village under surveillance, the ones who helped build the very village itself seems quite drastic indeed." Inoichi added on to the Sarutobi's thoughts as calmly as he could.

However, some of the others were not as composed about the matter, as Kiba stood up from his chair and almost growled at Naruto. "Are you joking right now? You're suspecting us for being the traitors when we put our blood and souls into protecting this village when it was under attack all those years ago. Now we're all going to be treated as criminals?!"

Shino whispered to his friend to calm down but the argument only heated up further when Ino joined in with Kiba. "I have to agree with Kiba on this one. Treating every single one of us like criminals and placing us all under suspicion for being traitors is hardly the way to repay us when we were the ones to elect you into the position of power as the Hokage."

"I understand all of your concerns but such drastic actions have to be put into place given our past. We've now had two incidents where Konoha has been in an all-out battle with Kumogakure 20 years ago and Kirigakure 8 years ago, the latter of which almost led to the destruction of our village. The previous Hokage, as great as his wisdom may have been was for too lax in response to these incidents since he did not want to step on the toes of anyone within the village by pointing fingers at individuals as a potential traitor. However, that has allowed this new situation to develop freely and I cannot at any cost let another incident such as those from our past to repeat again. As the Hokage it is my duty to ensure the safety of this village and its people at large, so even if that means doing something as severe as placing the most powerful shinobi of this village under surveillance, it has to be done. What I did not want to do was to take such actions behind all of your backs, as that would be disrespectful to your authority over this village. Not that I think it would be possible to undertake such actions without any of you noticing."

"That still does not legitimise your actions!" Kiba argued back, but this time his mother pulled him back down to his seat.

There was still unrest within the room as many were not yet fully accepting of Naruto's decisions. But it was at this moment that one of the most influential individuals in Konoha decided to chime in.

"I agree with Uzumaki Naruto's decision." Fugaku Uchiha spoke out for the very first time, a man who was normally of very few words, his expression as hardened as ever. "We the Uchiha built this village of Konoha and ever since then we've fought tooth and nails to keep it safe. Just during my tenure as the leader of the Uchiha, my clan participated and were deciding factors in both the battles against Kumogakure and Kirigakure. In the case of the latter we stood by Uzumaki Naruto's side in order to protect it, and now we will stand by his decision as the Hokage once more. We share the same belief as the current Hokage that for the longest time the previous Hokage have been far too meek in confronting our adversaries, whether that be inside the village or outside. This has led us to always be on the defensive and almost led to the destruction of Konoha eight years ago. Thus it is finally time that we put our foot down and took action, as drastic as it may need to be, even if that means putting this entire village under surveillance to capture the traitor, or at least to stop him temporarily until another solution can be thought of. That is indeed the best course of action right now."

The Uchiha's words came as a surprise to many. They didn't expect him to outright side of Naruto in this manner. This was only compounded by the person who spoke next.

"It isn't often that I find myself agreeing with the Uchiha, but in this particular instance I have to concur with him. I also believe that the Hokage's plans are sound, as unreasonable as they may seem at first, given our current situation. It is far better if you consider that it may be preventing the loss of precious lives and yet another potential invasion from years past. Not to mention, if you aren't guilty of any heinous activities, this decision should be of no consequence to you in any manner." Hiashi sided with Naruto, yet another man whose influence could rival that of the Uchiha's leader, and thus Naruto now suddenly had the support of two of the strongest clans in the village. His case was almost certainly accepted, but that did not mean some of the others did not still look opposed to it.

Naruto took a deep breath and decided to address the audience for one final time. "Look, if you're still opposed to my idea then you are free to bring it up with the village council. I'm sure Danzo Shimura over there along with the other elders will take all of your queries into consideration and if enough of you disagree with me, my decision may very well be overwritten by the council in this instance. No hard feelings. That being said, I will reiterate the fact that it is my duty as the Hokage to protect this village, and as my teacher once taught me – I must do so at all costs. That is all. Thank you all once again for attending."

Thus Naruto stood up from his seat and was the very first person to take his leave as no one had anything else left to say at this moment; they needed time to think. The Uchiha and the Hyuga followed suit until most other clans left as well, leaving only the Ino-Shika-Chou behind.

"Shikamaru, judging from your look you did not seem to know about any of this beforehand." Shukaku asked his son somewhat sympathetically knowing how much stress he was normally under as the Hokage's advisor.

"When does Naruto ever tell me about anything? He just does what he wants. I don't even know anymore what he's planning."

"I do have to wonder what he's thinking announcing openly his plans to introduce ANBU surveillance over the whole village. Wouldn't it have been better to keep it a secret? I mean it's going to be even more difficult to capture the traitor now given that it is even less likely for him to make any moves." Chouza asked his age old teammates.

"I'm sure Naruto has something in mind in regards to that. I just hope he has thought this all through for his own sake because the last thing you want to do as the Hokage is step on the toes of the people who put you in that position to begin with." Inoichi replied with a sigh as the three clans exited the meeting room.

Naruto was currently jumping from rooftop to rooftop as he made his way to his house within Konoha. He simply had one thought in mind: _"I'm almost certain that the traitor was in that meeting room today, and it's only a matter of time before I find out who it is – the one who killed my parents and separated me from my wife and child."_

 **The next weekend…**

It was early morning on Saturday and Naruto was currently in his mansion near to his family. He was sleeping soundly in his bed, lying flat on his back and drooling with a devious look on his face as he dreamed as always of having intimate moments with his wife.

"Oh Hinata, you little temptress you! I just got back from work and you greet me in that outfit…" Naruto spoke in his sleep and his expression changed into one of bewilderment as his wife in his dream gave him the option of having either a bath, or dinner, or herself. Naruto's answer was quite simple. "I'LL HAVE YOOOOOOOUUUUUUU!"

Just at that moment it was almost as though a ton of bricks landed on Naruto's abdomen, waking him up unceremoniously from his sleep and knocking the wind out of his lungs.

"Wake up Ero-Jiji! WAKE UP!" Boruto cried out to Naruto as he slapped his face continuously with full force. "IT'S AN EMERGENCY!"

Naruto's brain was in a daze as he was still teetering between dream and reality, but he barely managed to speak out to his son. "W-What the heck is going on?"

"Kaa-chan. It's Kaa-chan!"

Naruto was now fully awake and in full alert. "What happened to your Kaa-chan?!"

Boruto took a deep breath, his face clouded in concern. "I think Kaa-chan…is getting married!"

There was silence for a second followed by a resounding thud as Naruto fell out of his bed in disbelief.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?"

Thus a day full of misunderstandings and misadventures awaited the team of father and son.

* * *

Now before any of you freak out, no Hinata is not getting married. As the ending suggests, it's going to be a comic relief chapter since most of the recent chapters have been rather serious and I want to lighten up the mood a bit.

As for this chapter, I'm very curious to know who you think the traitor is. As Naruto pointed out that person was actually in the meeting room. It'll be fun to see if your guesses ultimately match up with the real culprit and eventually once that person/group is revealed I can give props to those who guessed his or her identity correctly.

 **NarHina:** The way I wrote last chapter it was meant to be Boruto being initially angry at Hinata for hiding the truth from him but ultimately siding with her as he came to the realisation how much she loves him and that she ultimately did everything to protect him. I think it makes more sense for him to side with his mother initially and be somewhat biased towards her just because she's the one who raised him and he doesn't even know who his father is. Eventually he'll get to meet Naruto as well, as in find out that he is his father, so that will give him a bigger perspective on everything, but he'll always love his mother, that will never change.

 **Guest 8:** I think I mentioned Kakashi way back when Minato left on his final mission. Kakashi was with him then. I guess I should visit Kakashi's character at some point, if the situation permits.

 **magicofantasy:** Well yes, Naruto's involvement did indirectly lead to Hinata getting hurt when fighting the Kumo shinobi. But at the same time one of the reasons as to why Naruto was searching for her in the first place was because the traitor from within Konoha was leaking information about Hinata's affiliation with Naruto to the Raikage and the Raikage had placed a bounty on Hinata's head for her Byakugan, leading to Kumogakure shinobi searching for her. So Naruto wanted to find her first in order to protect her and Boruto. It's difficult to say whether the Kumogakure shinobi would have found Hinata if Naruto did not get involved.

That is all I have for today. As always let me know your thoughts and I will see you all next time.


	16. Operation: Stop The Fake Marriage!

**Operation: Stop the Fake Marriage!**

* * *

It was just another day at the small and unknown village near the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. For its people this was yet another uneventful weekend. However, for a certain team of father and son, that was anything but the case.

Naruto and Boruto were currently on a stakeout in an alleyway near a certain shop in the business district of the village. They were peeking around from behind some dumpsters with very grim looks to their faces, making it appear as though they were up to no good. Passer-bys made every effort to keep a good distance from the two to not get involved in whatever shenanigans they may be planning.

However, a little girl who understood no better decided to voice her opinion to her parent. "Mom look there are two suspicious individuals standing in that alleyway."

The mother quickly shut her mouth while whispering to her: "Don't look that way. We don't want to get into any troubles."

And the two were gone in a moment's notice as though they were avoiding the plague.

At this point Naruto decided to voice his concern to his own son. "Are you sure about this whole thing? Couldn't this be some sort of misunderstanding?"

"No, my friends told me that they saw mama go into that shop multiple times this week."

"Isn't that even more of a reason that all of this is just a misunderstanding? Maybe your friends were playing a prank on you or something." Naruto decided to become the voice of reason for his son, but the young boy was dead set on his assertion.

"I didn't believe it at first until I decided to tail mama as well, and sure enough even I saw her go into that shop yesterday with my own eyes. There's no doubt about the fact that she's been regularly visiting this place that specialises in selling marriage related clothing and items?"

Naruto was still unconvinced. "Has she spoken to you about any such matters?"

"No she hasn't, which is what makes it even more suspicious. Normally she tells me everything. Besides I thought for someone who's already married to get married again, they needed to get something called a die-for-see first right?"

Naruto scratched his dead in confusion for a second before he realised what his son was mentioning. "You mean divorce?"

"Yeah that."

"How does a kid like you know what divorce is? You're just 7 years old. Do you even know what that means?"

"I heard it somewhere and asked my teacher about it. She said that when two people that are married don't like each other and don't want to stay married anymore, they break up and get a divorce. Do you think mama got a divorce as well?"

"HECK NO!" Naruto's response was so loud and brazen that it made Boruto recoil backwards in surprise, but he soon looked at his father with suspicious eyes.

"How do you know if my mother got a divorce or not?"

"I-I-It was just a guess! Your mother seems like a nice and dedicated woman who wouldn't break up with her husband so easily…or something like that." Naruto's face grew pale as he realised that he almost busted his cover and started fidgeting around uncomfortably trying to come up with some excuses, sweat dripping from his forehead. "A-Anyway, what about you? Why did you bring me here along with you in the first place?"

Boruto clicked his tongue in frustration of what he was about to say. "Although you're a big perv, I gotta admit that you're kind of reliable when it comes down to these kinds of serious matters."

Although what Boruto called his father could only be described as an insult, to Naruto those words took him back down memory lane. Many years ago after Naruto and Hinata had gotten married, Hinata would often lovingly refer to her husband as a "Big Perv" due to reasons that cannot be elaborated on a "T Rated" story.

Since his son had somehow ended up giving him the same nickname as his wife, Naruto couldn't help but smile at the odd yet ironic coincidence. However, that smile was quickly dissipated by the words of two teenage girls that were passing by on the street.

"Hey did you hear that little boy call that man a "Big Perv"? Shouldn't we report him to the authorities? Who knows what he could end up doing to that child." One of the girls suggested to her friend.

"It's better to not get involved with this kind of stuff. I don't want to get chased by some kind of pervert." The friend was far too much of a chicken to act and quickly pulled away her classmate from the scene.

"Look what you've done! Those girls think I'm some kind of a weirdo because of what you've been saying. You really need to think before you say these kinds of things. It's my reputation on the line here!" Naruto sighed in defeat when he suddenly saw his son activate his Byakugan out of the blue. "Wait wait wait! What the heck are doing activating those eyes all of a sudden? What if someone sees you?"

"Mama's here!" Boruto replied before deactivating his eyes within a moment. "Let's take a look."

Naruto had a lot to say to his son about the careless use of his powers but for the moment he decided to let it slide as both father and son carefully peeked out of the alleyway only to find Hinata standing in front of the marriage specialist shop.

"I knew it! She's here again. What did I tell you?" Boruto whispered to his father.

Naruto had half expected all of this to be just a hoax or a misunderstanding but even he was surprised to see Hinata in front of that store. What could she possibly want from this place?

To make matters worse, at that moment an elderly bald man came out of the store and greeted Hinata with a smile. The two spoke for a while before Hinata herself smiled back at him, but they were too far away for the contents of their conversation to be heard by the two individuals observing from afar.

"What is that old geezer smiling at mama for? NO WAY! DON'T TELL ME THAT BALDY IS TRYING TO MAKE A PASS AT HE-" Before Boruto could finish Naruto quickly placed his hand over his mouth to stop his shouting.

"Shhhh! Not so loud. You're going to blow our cove-" This time before Naruto could finish, Boruto bit on to one his fingers with full force and sent the battle hardened ninja rolling on the floor in pain and in tears. "Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch! You bit me! You actually bit me you ungrateful little punk! I think I'm bleeding. Where's my mama when I need her?"

"Get up. They're going inside. We need to see what's happening." Boruto ordered his father as though he were the leader of a shinobi team. Naruto barely managed to recover from his injury as his son now pulled him over to the front of the store so that they could spy inside.

Everyone outside looked at the duo with questioning glances, but they didn't care. They were focused on staying hidden from Hinata and peeked through the glass door from either side of it. Right now they only saw one man standing at the reception and another tending to the store, but after a few minutes passed, Hinata emerged from the changing room fully garbed and dressed up in a very expensive looking wedding Kimono. The two men looked at her and showered her with compliments on how amazing she looked in the clothing. Even Hinata seemed somewhat shy from receiving such praise.

At this point Boruto was gritting his teeth in both shock and anger. But Naruto was one step beyond that – one could almost see fumes of rage coming out from his head. That was his wife! No one looked at his wife and complimented her beside him! NO ONE! He was ready to draw blood.

As Hinata made her way to a room at the back, both father and son despite their previous grievances shared a knowing glance and burst right in to the store.

"Good morning sir, how may I help you today?" One of the store clerks greeted the two, but they simply kept walking to the back. "Wait, where are you going?"

"To the back!" Both Naruto and Boruto gave the same exact same reply at once.

"You can't go there. That room is for employees only. Plus we've got an important meeting going on there at this moment." The store clerk tried to stop the duo, but they had no intentions of letting anyone get in their now.

"SIC EM!" Boruto ordered and one swift punch to the gut Naruto knocked the store clerk out cold before he could even understand what was happening. The other man that was tending to the shop now caught wind of what was going on to his brother and was about to rush to his rescue, but Naruto appeared behind him with his ninja stealth and knocked him out as well with a swift chop to the neck. Boruto couldn't help but nod at his master's handiwork and gave him a compliment, "Good boy!"

Naruto smiled happily for a second before realising how Boruto was currently treating him. "HEY, I'm not your dog!"

"We have no time to waste." Boruto cut him off as he ran up to the door to the employee's room to the back and posted up next to it. Sure enough he could hear multiple voices coming from the back, one of which belonged to his mother. It was at this point that Boruto drew a metal pipe that he had been carrying since he left home and held it like a sword. "To protect my mother from all evil, I will use this blade of justice!"

"You mean a metal pipe of justice…" Naruto gave a deadpanned response after finally realising why Boruto brought that metal pipe along with him. It was also at this point did he realise that his son wasn't joking around as looked like he was ready to put that pipe to good use as a makeshift weapon. "Wait Boruto, I don't think you should be going around swinging that thing nonchalantly. It may just be a pipe but it can still do some damage."

"That's the point!" Boruto replied before kicking the door in front of him open as Naruto dove for cover so as to not get spotted by the people inside.

"Wait Boruto stop! I don't think your mother is actually-" Naruto tried to reach out to his son in a hushed tone to not blow his cover, but he was already too late. Boruto screamed like a banshee and charged right into the room without a second thought. At this point Naruto could only close his eyes and pray that his son wouldn't do something stupid.

"B-Boruto!?" Hinata was shocked to see her son at this place.

Inside the room Boruto saw his mother, two middle aged women and the old man from earlier. Instantly he reached the worst possible conclusion and was overtaken by a fit of rage. All he could think about at that moment was not wanting to lose his mother, and that old man seemed like the archetypal villain he needed to defeat in order to make that wish a reality. Thus he ran towards the man with metal pipe in hand, better judgement be damned.

"AS IF I'D EVER LET AN OLD GEEZER LIKE YOU STEAL MY MOTHER!" He yelled at the top of his lungs and swung his metal pipe at the same time, only missing the elderly man by a hair's width and instead smashed the glass table next to him into pieces.

The old man now fearing for his life ran to the other side of the room in desperation. But Boruto gave chase and slammed his weapon down again, once more missing just by a sliver, destroying a pot of plants in the process.

"Help, someone help me!" The old man screamed as a bloodthirsty Boruto sought to inflict collateral damage on him.

"GET BACK HERE BALDY SO THAT I CAN CRACK YOUR SHINY SKULL WIDE OPEN!" Boruto's primal scream made the old man trip on his own foot in fear and was left with nowhere to run. The young Uzumaki finally had him cornered and now had a maniacal grin on his face as he held the metal pipe over his head to deal the decisive blow.

"Oh god, please no!" Naruto closed both his eyes and ears at this point, preparing for the worst.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" A familiar shout resonated across the shop as one swift karate chop from behind on to his head from his mother put Boruto out of commission. Naruto could only sigh a breath of relief. He could always rely on Hinata to make matters right.

Thus began a very lengthy verbal licking for Boruto from his mother as he learned of the truth behind the whole situation. And the more he learned, the more he felt ashamed of himself for acting so impulsively.

"APOLOGISE! Apologise again for the absolutely unacceptable way in which you acted towards this kind old man!" Hinata ordered her son in an absolute tone.

Boruto, whose head now had a visible bump from the karate chop he received from his mother earlier, could only obey her words without question. "Hai…I'm really sorry for reaching the wrong conclusions and for everything I did earlier."

"I sincerely apologise for his actions as well. It is as much my fault as it is his. Clearly I did not raise him well enough for such an incident to take place. Please find it in your heart to forgive the two of us for everything that has happened today. I know this isn't much but I'll pay for all the damage he has caused and anything extra you may deem necessary." Hinata's head was felled in shame from her son's course of actions as she herself apologised wholeheartedly.

The old man shook his head sideways and laughed it all off. "Oh no you don't have to do any of that. It was all just a misunderstanding after all and no one is hurt. So it's fine really. I do have to say, it was rather nice to see a son who is so protective and caring of his mother. I think that's a blessing in and of itself."

His two middle-aged daughters were also laughing at the whole situation and came to an agreement with their father.

"Hinata-san, please do not feel bad. You've been of invaluable help to the two of us for this past week." One of the two sisters expressed their gratitude strongly. "Besides, I thought Boruto was actually quite valiant fighting to protect his mother to the bitter end. It was certainly a sight to behold. So please, don't punish him for his actions. It is my earnest request."

The other sister walked up to Boruto and ruffled his hair gently. "As we mentioned before, you don't have to worry at all Boruto. No one's stealing your mother away from you. Me and my sister are regulars at her bakery – you may even have seen us every now and then. From there we became friends with her. You see, the two of us inherited this shop from our father which is actually quite well known in all the surrounding villages and as such have started designing wedding Kimonos ourselves. Since your mother is still so young and beautiful unlike the two of us, we asked her to do us a favour and try out our Kimonos so that we could see first-hand how well they look on a woman who is still of a prime age to get married. Our father just came by to give us some guidance given his many years of experience. As you can probably agree, we think this design for the Kimono looks absolutely wonderful on your mother, but maybe that's just because of how naturally beautiful she looks. What do you think?"

For the first time Boruto actually had the opportunity to look at his mother up close in the wedding Kimono and he was mesmerised by how dazzling she appeared. He never really paid attention to such matters but in this instance Boruto could appreciate that his mother was someone still in her prime. He had always taken for granted that the two of them would always be together by themselves, but in reality if Hinata wanted given her beauty, she could easily find herself another man without much effort. That thought however brought an unsettling feeling over Boruto that he never quite felt before.

Outside of the shop Naruto started to make his way back to his mansion, a smile plastered to his face. He knew all along that Hinata wasn't getting married, or he simply believed it intrinsically given everything the two of them had gone through together. He had just tagged along with his son to check out what was going on, and after seeing his son's actions in regards to his mother, he felt a happy sense of relief within him. _"I guess I don't have to worry too much after all. Boruto is doing a fine job of looking after Hinata."_

 **Some time later…**

Hinata and Boruto had just arrived home, but she was still upset over her son's behaviour.

"Kaa-san, as I said earlier…I'm sorry. I just thought if I didn't do something…I might…lose you…" Boruto had a hard time expressing his inner feelings because of how embarrassed he was, but he did so regardless. Seeing his mother upset was simply too disheartening for him.

"I still can't believe you thought I was actually getting married. Do you really think I wouldn't tell you beforehand if I ever decided to do such a thing?" Hinata asked her son with a harsh glare that caused him to drop his gaze from hers in remorse.

"I know…I was wrong."

However, seeing her son care for her so much made Hinata's expression soften up as she caressed his face ever so gently. After all, Boruto reminded her of the man she was actually married to in reality.

"You should know this Boruto that there is only one man that I have ever loved in my life, whom I married. And I can never love anyone else like that ever again. So you don't have to worry about me getting married to someone else."

Boruto was shocked to hear such decisive words from his mother in regards to his father, but before he could say anything back she had already gotten up and left for her room. However, just the tone in which she spoke – one that did not have even a hint of hesitation – told exactly how much she cared for that man. It made Boruto wonder that the stories of his parents loving one another with all their hearts once upon a time were true after all. But more importantly, perhaps they still loved one another in that same way even to this day. It's just that the love was hidden away under all the hardships they had faced throughout the years. Boruto wondered that if only he could meet his father, he could ascertain that fact for himself.

 **The next morning…**

Boruto once again arrived at Naruto's mansion under the pretence that he would be playing with his friends for the day. In reality he was here to continue his ninja training and he couldn't wait to get started. So he entered the house and made a mad dash towards Naruto's bedroom, thinking up all sorts of mischievous ways in which to wake his poor father up who would normally still be sleeping at this hour. To his surprise however he found Naruto sitting on his bed pressing away at his handheld game console with all the concentration in the world. It was a console Boruto recognised instantly as he himself played it all the time.

"Yo! You're here pretty early." Naruto greeted his son with a wry smile. "How did things go with your mother yesterday?"

"I got chewed up real bad. It turns out she was helping out the store owners for a bit by acting as their temporary model."

"Yeah…I thought as much."

"Well if you had an idea why didn't you tell me!? It would have saved me a ton of embarrassment." Boruto was now a bit annoyed with his father.

"I tried to but you ran off like a mad man before I could stop you. Maybe this will be a good lesson for you to think first before acting."

"Yeah yeah whatever." Boruto shrugged off the suggestion out of annoyance but couldn't help his curiosity in regards to what was in Naruto's hands. "By the way, what are you playing? It's quite odd to see you awake at this time. Normally you're always asleep."

"Oh this? It's a game where you have to catch 151 critters that are scattered across this massive region. I've been hooked to it for quite some time now. I was even playing it at work, but my advisor found out and got angry at me for playing video games rather than going through boring paper works. So I had to put it away until the weekend. I'm this close to completing my collection. I've caught 150 of these critters but I just can't find the last one. It's so annoying since I caught them all on my own without using any walkthroughs online, but now the last has been alluding me for so long. I've searched the entire region high and low but I've had no luck whatsoever."

As Naruto explained his plight, Boruto jumped on to the bed next to Naruto with a smug smile on his face. "Here, let me see. I've caught all 151 and I bet I even know which one you're missing."

"YOU'VE CAUGHT ALL 151?!" Naruto looked at his son wide-eyed as he passed the console on to him.

Sure enough as Boruto flipped through Naruto's "Dex" to check out his collection, he found out the culprit that kept Naruto from completing the game. "Yup just as I thought, the one critter you're missing is the same one that can't legitimately be caught in game. It's actually only technically obtainable by going to special events held by the company. That's why you couldn't find it."

"WHAT!? Are you kidding me? Who thought that was a great idea? I worked so hard on this game yet I can't complete it because someone decided to make this last critter exclusive to special real life events. That's just so frustrating. GAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Naruto screamed in annoyance as he ruffled his own hair.

"Actually, even though you can't technically get that critter in game, there is a glitch you can use to catch it. That's how I got mine."

Naruto's eyes widened once more at the sublime piece of information he heard and was already grovelling at the opportunity to finally complete his collection. "Oh Master Boruto, will you not teach this plebeian how to finally capture this mythical creature that has alluded him for the longest time? Pretty please!"

"Fine, I'll show you, so you better be grateful." Boruto agreed and instantly Naruto grabbed his son and placed him on his lap on top of his folded legs. "W-What do you think you're doing?"

"This way I can see exactly what you are doing."

Boruto decided not to pursue the matter further as he was completely absorbed in performing the glitch within the game to capture the mythical event critter. He didn't even realise that Naruto's hands were gently wrapped around him and his chin firmly planted on top of his head.

To Naruto the game itself had become inconsequential. This was a moment in time between father and son that he had missed out for all these years. Perhaps if he and Hinata were still together, such a scene would be commonplace in their household – one where Naruto would be playing together with Boruto and enjoying their time together. Just having his son in his arms brought a sense of joy that he just couldn't describe with words. Naruto only wished that this moment would last forever. Despite his regrets for missing out on many such precious moments with his family, Naruto resolved to make up for them from now on.

Thus both father and son were lost in their own little world talking and playing games together until they were broken out of it by the ringing of the doorbell downstairs.

"You have a visitor?" Boruto asked curiously.

"I wonder who it is this early in the morning." Naruto wondered out loud.

As such the duo made their way downstairs to meet whoever was at the door.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed the somewhat light-hearted chapter this time around after all the serious chapters. Do you want to see more of these silly chapters dispersed in between the more serious stuff? I can definitely think of some funny scenarios to write about.

As for this chapter, I've left a reference for you all to my favorite video game franchise of all time. I do mention it a lot in my stories lol. But I wonder how many of you caught on to the "critter" Naruto was missing. Big props will go to all that did find out.

Other than that I'll leave you to guess who is visiting Naruto next time. Let's just say that it's been one in the making for a while.

From last time there were a lot of guesses as to who the traitor could be and I'll be sure to point out all those who guessed correctly when everything is revealed. It was certainly very interesting seeing some of the people you guys thought were culprits.

 **Yuyui Hime, Beatrizmar:** Naruto and Hinata will meet soon. There's just a few more important events that will need to happen before they meet. I want to make it something special.

 **HyugaVault** **:** Don't worry, I do intend to go back to my other story after I get this one a little bit further. I've already got the next chapter planned out for that.

 **jankitty13:** I've intentionally kept Itachi on the down low for now because whatever happened to him will play in later on in the story. For now Sasuke is the heir to the Uchiha clan.

 **AndyM9594:** That's one way to guess correctly by putting nearly everyone on the list lol. There's a good chance one of them is the correct answer ;)

 **magicofantasy, HitmaN007:** Although this chapter was mostly silly stuff, I did want to highlight Naruto's trust in Hinata that she would never marry (love) anyone else beside him. The same applies for him as well who has been searching for her for years without giving up.

That is all for today. Once again, let me know your thoughts and until next time, be well :)


	17. The Ties of Kinship

**The Ties of Kinship**

No updates for a bit since I was off enjoying summer, but it's time to get back into the action. So without any more waiting, let's get started once again!

* * *

Naruto walked downstairs to the entrance of his mansion in order to meet his guests. As soon as he opened the door he was greeted by two all too familiar faces, his father and sister-in laws. "Wow, you're here already this early? I thought it'd take you till midday to get here."

"The early bird catches the worm, or so they say." Hiashi said in his ever so calm demeanor.

"I think what he means is that he couldn't sleep all night to meet the little one and rushed here as early as possible." Hanabi elaborated the truth behind her father's motivations, leaving him a little on the spot. "Not that I can say I'm any different."

"I see. So I take it that the ANBU didn't cause any troubles? I did inform them to let you two leave the village in this instance without any questioning due to clan related matters."

"It was fine. The ANBU didn't bother us. Plus when we got here it was pretty easy to locate this mansion with the Byakugan. It does kind of stick out like a sore thumb in the area. I do have to say though, this place is pretty amazing. Who would build such a mansion here in the first place?" Hanabi questioned while admiring the sheer scale of Naruto's new abode.

"Yeah I was surprised too when I learned of its existence. Apparently some really rich guy built it a while ago. He ended up leaving the village eventually but gave away his mansion to the village elders so that they could use it as they saw fit for the benefit of their people. Unfortunately no one in the village was that well off to rent out the place, so they simply kept the place maintained even though no one lived in it. That was until I got here and rented out the whole mansion. From here getting to Hinata and Boruto is pretty easy. It actually worked out pretty nicely if I say so myself."

The mention of his daughter and grandchild piqued Hiashi's interest as they were the very reason for his long journey here. "So, when is the little one arriving? I would like to make his acquaintance as soon as possible."

It was almost as though to answer that very question that a young blonde kid appeared behind Naruto. The sight was like a bolt from the blue for the two Hyuga.

"Who are they?" Boruto asked his teacher curiously.

"It's him isn't it? IT IS!" Hanabi didn't even bother hearing Naruto's reply before swooping in like a hawk after its prey and snatched up Boruto off the ground into her arms and started to vigorously rub her cheeks with his. "Look at him! He's so KAWAII! Can I keep him? Can I snuggle with him? I will take REALLY good care of him, so please let me have him! PRETTY PLEASE!"

"Save me…" Boruto barely managed to call out to Naruto while being handled like a plush toy by his new captor.

"HE'S NOT A PET FOR YOU TO OWN! LET HIM GO!" Naruto now intervened seeing the desperate state of his son and pried him off of Hanabi's iron grasp. This wasn't anything new to Naruto however as Hanabi had always been a spoiled child who would go to any lengths to have what she wanted for as long as he knew her. She also had an unquenchable love for all things kawaii.

Boruto's head was spinning at this point from being manhandled by multiple people, but once he came to he had one question for Naruto. "Ero-jiji, who the heck are these people?"

Hanabi's ears perked up at Boruto's remark. "What did you just call him?"

"Ero-jiji?" Boruto replied ever so casually to Naruto's dismay as Hanabi dropped on to her knees while having a giggling fit. Even Hiashi covered his mouth at that moment, leaving Naruto to wonder what sort of expression warranted hiding for the otherwise stoic and battle-hardened Hyuga.

"What are you calling me in front of my guests!? Seriously!" Naruto felt like hiding his head somewhere in shame.

Hanabi, who's current state could literally be described by the shorthand "ROFLMAO" barely managed to get her composure back to speak. "Ero-jiji? Wow what a perfect name. Why didn't I think of that? I'm already in love with you little one."

"Well shut it! I don't need to hear that from you." Naruto replied to Hanabi in a rather irritated tone before turning to his son once more. "Leaving that terrible exchange behind, I want to introduce you to my guests, who I've personally invited here to assist with your training, especially in regards to your Hyuga lineage. You see, the Hyuga clan has a very unique combat style that utilises their eyes and other special abilities which complement their vision that is only passed on through the members of the clan. Therefore I've invited the two most important members of the Hyuga clan to teach you the basics of their clan's fighting style."

Boruto's eyes widened when he learned of the two Hyuga standing before him. He could see it clearly, the resemblance between their eyes with his mother's, as well as his own. It was however the next bit of information that Naruto relayed upon him that truly left him in shock.

"First I'd like for you to meet Hiashi Hyuga, the current leader of the Hyuga clan and one of the greatest warriors the clan has ever produced. Alongside him is Hanabi Hyuga, his daughter and future successor to the clan. They might be a bit rough around the edges in terms of personality, but they're some of my most precious people. I know they'll be able to help you immensely in bringing out your latent potential."

The Hyuga clan leader? Instantly Boruto remembered the story his grandmother had told him a few days before and how his mother was the older daughter of the Hyuga clan leader. Then that could only mean…

"You two…you're related to mama aren't you? You have the same eyes." Boruto asked a very pointed question out of the blue, catching both Hyuga completely off guard.

Naruto himself did not expect this development at all. "How did you know your mother was a Hyuga?"

Boruto shook his head in disappointment. "How could I not? You told me didn't you that I was a Hyuga because I had the Byakugan? I've seen mama with those eyes ever since I was born. That would mean that she's also a Hyuga and it was from her that I got my eyes. The two of them also have the same eyes as her and they came all the way here to see me, so I think they have to be related to mama."

Everyone in the room was stunned to silence by Boruto's explanation. It was so simple yet hit right at the heart of the entire situation. It was Hiashi who was the oldest and most wise that decided to react by kneeling down on to his legs in order to come face to face with the youngest person in the room. He knew exactly what he needed to say given the sudden development.

"You are absolutely correct in your assumptions young one. I am indeed related to your mother directly by blood. It is quite impressive that you discovered the connection so easily, but then again I would expect nothing less from my grandson."

Although Boruto already knew by now his relation to Hiashi, but him actually coming out and saying it made his heart race. To be able to meet his grandfather for the very first time in his life was an experience unlike any other. Thus he couldn't help but close the distance between the two and started repeatedly punching his grandfather's chest.

"You show up all of a sudden after all these years, where have you been all this time?" He asked in a meek tone, one that belied Boruto's usual demeanour and current action.

Even the battle-hardened Hiashi could not hold his tough composure any longer as he embraced his grandson in response for the very first time. "I apologise for not being there for all these years, dear grandson. I just didn't know where your mother had taken you. That being said I will not make excuses. I simply wish to make it up to you from now on if you would be so inclined to give me a chance."

Hanabi decided to join in as she patted Boruto on the head with a wide grin across her face, this time in a much more controlled manner. "I'm sorry too Boruto. I hope you will get along with your super special awesome aunt from now. We'll make sure to have lots of fun to make for everything we missed out on over the years."

Boruto couldn't help but nod at his newly discovered kin with a grin very reminiscent of his father's. Slowly bad surely the family members that Boruto never got to meet ever since childhood were appearing before him and he didn't feel so isolated in the world anymore compared to other children. That feeling of joy in getting to know one's own family made him happy. Now there was just one more truly important person that was left for Boruto to meet.

"If you're my grandfather and aunt then that must mean you two know my father right – this man named Uzumaki Naruto? I want to meet him. No…I NEED to meet him. I have to talk to him face to face and learn what he has to say to me as well. Please you have to take me to him."

It was one bolt from the blue to another. Boruto's pleading left both Hiashi and Hanabi dumbfounded as neither of them knew what to say to their newest family member. His father was standing right in front of him but they couldn't tell him that right now. As such they simply glanced at Naruto seeking answers.

"Boruto, how do you know that name – Uzumaki Naruto?" Naruto asked as had expected for Hinata to have hidden the truth behind Boruto's father from him. But now that assumption was clearly under question.

"Mama told me his name after many years of me asking, but that is all she told me for now. That is why I need to meet him and learn the rest of the story from him. Only he can tell me the truth behind what happened between them besides her." Boruto explained while remembering that both of his parents had their own reasons for going their separate ways.

Naruto was surprised to say the least after hearing that Hinata of all people had finally told Boruto of his name. Even though it seemed something small at first glance, it meant that she was finally willing to confront her past and eventually open up to their child about the truth as opposed to making up something false entirely. That thought gave a lot of hope to Naruto as he knew exactly what to say to his son. Thus he kneeled down in front of him and grabbed his shoulders firmly.

"Boruto, I'm sorry for keeping this information from you for all this time but your father…the man named Uzumaki Naruto…has known about you ever since you and I met. He is aware of where you and your mother live and in fact it was he who requested me to train you personally. He promised that he will meet you when the time is right. I know this may sound vague at the moment but your father has his reasons for taking his time with this matter especially since it concerns your mother as well. So please, I beg of you to trust me this once and have some patience with your father. When the time comes, soon you will most certainly meet him. At that point he will answer every question you may ever have, and accept any punishment you may have for him as well…or so he says." Naruto explained as sincerely as possible and even though it was painful to not be able to come out in front of his son as his father, he knew there were still certain matters that he needed to tend to before that could happen.

Although Boruto had many questions that needed answers and he would normally try to pry them out at all costs, in his particular instance he couldn't help but accept his master's sincere request. After all no matter how much of a front he put up, deep inside Boruto admired the man that stood in front of him more than anyone else ever before. Unbeknownst to him Naruto was the very first father figure Boruto ever had in his life and because of it he was willing to respect his desire. Thus almost uncharacteristically for Boruto, he agreed to wait for his father's appearance as par his master's request, not knowing that his master was in reality his father.

Thus with introductions complete, the four of them decided to have some breakfast as they got to talk to Boruto and got to know him more closely before heading out to start his training. All four of them were currently standing outside of the mansion in the rather spacious backyard. Hanabi was getting ready to teach Boruto about the Hyuga's abilities while Naruto and Hiashi watched on from a distance.

"Alright Boruto, I may have been a little forceful during our introduction but I'll make sure to teach you of our clan's secrets from now on. As my older sister's son, you would normally be one in line to succeed the Hyuga's throne in the future if you so choose, but let's not worry about those dull things. I heard you haven't been in contact with ninjas your whole life, so your aunt will show you some really cool stuff okay? Your mother was once known as the prodigy among prodigies and your father may very well be the strongest shinobi alive. Therefore with some hard work you can definitely become just as great, if not even greater!"

Boruto gulped hard as he learned more about his parents' lofty status but at the same time his eyes gleamed with excitement. "I'll do my best!"

"That's the spirit! So the first very important thing I want to mention is that the Hyuga's fighting style is based around finesse and precision as opposed to pure brute strength. It uses the Byakugan's powerful vision in order to hit the enemy's weak points. This fighting style is known as the Gentle Fist and it can be used both offensive and defensively." Hanabi explained like a wise and experienced individual, but the next moment a mischievous glint appeared in her eyes. "Therefore to start off I'll show one of the Hyuga's most powerful defensive techniques. It is one that I like to call – SPIN 2 WIN!"

Just as the name suggested, Hanabi spun around at an incredible pace which caused a blue dome of energy to form all around her that was powerful enough to deflect most ninja attacks.

The technique left Boruto speechless as he had never seen anything quite like it. He was almost jumping up and down in his shoes out of amazement and as soon as Hanabi stopped spinning, he showered her with praise. "THE SPIN 2 WIN IS AMAZING! That was so awesome, so coooool. Can you do it again? Please?!"

"Sure, why not?" Hanabi honoured Boruto's request and did the technique once more to Boruto's awe. "So what do you think? Pretty awesome huh?"

"It is! It's super cool. You gotta teach me how to do that!"

"Well as the name suggests you just have to spin and victory will inevitably be yours…or so I'd like to say but it's a little more complicated than that and it's one of the Hyuga's high level techniques, so you'll have to learn the basics before you can learn that. Think of it as something to look forward to in the future – your own iron fortress that cannot be breached. Anyway, now that I've shown you one of our defensive techniques, how about I show you a super offensive one that can easily break through an enemy's defences?"

Boruto nodded as though his life depended on it. He just had to see this with his own eyes.

"This technique I like to call – POKE A FOOL! To do this you activate your Byakugan, focus your vision on the enemy's body to find all these weak points in their nervous system and then just poke away at those to your heart's content until you've left them incapacitated and unable to move. Generally it is enough to administer 64 pokes in relatively quick succession to leave the one on the other end done and dusted. The most important thing about this technique however is that while you're poking away at your enemy's defences, you have to make sure to sing the following song – POKE POKE POKE, ALL DAY LONG, POKE POKE POKE WHILE I SING THIS SONG!"

"What does the singing have to do with anything?"

"The song increases the power and effectiveness of the technique. It is one that has been passed on from ancient times you see."

While Hanabi explained the ridiculous requirements of one of the Hyuga's most storied techniques with a straight face, both Naruto and Hiashi's jaws were wide open. But it wasn't long before anger started to cloud the Hyuga clan leader's face.

"S-S-S-Spin 2 Win….P-P-P-Poke a Fool…the Hyuga's most venerated techniques disgraced in such vile manner!" Hiashi looked at Naruto with deadly eyes, the veins in his temples bulging so much that they looked like they were about to pop any second.

The sight caused Naruto to take several steps backwards in fear as he knew full well that an angry Hiashi was a bad Hiashi. "Why are you looking at me like that? She's the one who said it, not me."

"Don't try to fool me. I distinctly remember you giving such base names to our clan's greatest of techniques many years ago. She's simply repeating what you once taught her."

"I-I get that the names aren't the most flattering, but they're pretty accurate right? I mean you really do spin to block all of the enemy's attack and win the fight. Plus you do pretty much poke people all over their bodies with the other technique. Anyone who's stupid enough to get in your way to get poked that many times is a fool. See, pretty accurate right? I've had enough of my attacks deflected and poked all over my body by your daughter to know exactly what those techniques should be called. O-Okay, maybe on hindsight those names were kind of silly. But really I didn't ask Hanabi-chan to use those names at all, even as a joke." Naruto came up with some excuses for making up those names a long time ago but they only managed to anger Hiashi even more.

"I don't care! As a kid Hanabi used to be such a soft spoken and well-mannered little girl. But ever since you entered her life she has looked up to you even more than myself, HER FATHER, and turned into a brash and rambunctious individual such as yourself. Now this person is supposed to be the future of the Hyuga clan? The future looks grim and it is all your fault! Give me back my cute little Hanabi! GIVE HER BACK!" Hiashi at this point looked more like he was about to cry from having something truly precious stolen from him.

Naruto knew that Hanabi always thought very highly of him ever since he became friends with Hinata, but he never quite paid attention to how much he had influenced the little girl in the long run. It all happened quite naturally. Thus he couldn't come up with a rebuttal to Hiashi's claims and only stepped backwards nervously to get as far out of the Hyuga's reach as possible, who was now starting to look more and more like a mad man. As Naruto walked backwards, it wasn't long before his back eventually was up against a tree on the other side of the rather spacious backyard far away from where Hanabi and Boruto were training, leaving Naruto alone with Hiashi.

"Uzumaki Naruto…you screwed over both of my daughters, one of them figuratively and the other one LITERALLY, the proof of which is standing right there in front of my eyes as a little child. I don't know what it is but as a father I feel like taking your candy ass to town right now. So what do you say the two of us have a friendly brawl? No hard feelings if there are a few broken bones right?" As he cracked his knuckles, Hiashi had a maniacal smirk on his face that sent shivers up Naruto's spine. It was the smile of man that had nothing more to lose. Thus Naruto turned away and ran only to be jumped by Hanabi some distance ahead. He barely managed to dodge her but now found himself running away from Hanabi who seemed ready to launch one of her techniques on him.

"Get back here Nii-nii! I promised Boruto that I'd show him the Poke A Fool technique. I need someone to use it on. You're perfect for the job."

"Why the heck does it have to be me? I don't wanna get poked. I've been poked enough times by a certain someone back in the day to know it hurts really badly."

"Who else is it gonna be if it's not you? You've always been our training dummy for years, so come on, one more time for old time's sake. It'll be over quick."

"No firkin way! Get away from me. Someone help. It's a coup d'état. A crazy Hyuga's on the loose. HEEEEELP!"

As Naruto and Hanabi ran around the backyard like children, Hiashi and Boruto stood side by side dumbfounded by the childish stupidity. However after a little bit of time Boruto's expression took on a rather serious turn as he asked his grandfather one question that had been circulating within his mind ever since he heard that his father knew of his whereabouts.

"Why is it that Tou-chan even though he knows where I am won't come to see me? Does he care so little about me that he doesn't even want to meet me once?"

The sudden question surprised Hiashi at first but he quickly regained his composure. "That is not true Boruto. If he could your father would come rushing here right now to meet you. But he can't. Because he doesn't simply wish to meet you, he wants to take both you and your mother back with him. That has been his one true goal for the past 8 years ever since Hinata left him. He has searched relentlessly for the two of you without ever giving up and waited patiently for the day to come where the three of you could live together once more. That being said if if he were to appear in front of your mother right now, it would be difficult to solve matters. That is the reason why he is willing to wait just a bit longer if that would allow him to fix everything. As your master told you Boruto – have faith in your father. He will most certainly come for you before long."

Hiashi's account of his father gave Boruto some reassurance but he now wondered about something that hadn't crossed his mind before. "Say old man grandpa, will my parents ever get back together?

"I think…no…I KNOW that your parents will one day unite once again. I've seen your parents grow up alongside one another as childhood friends. The history they have with each other has created a bond that transcends any distance or hardship that may ever come between them. When your father lost your mother he didn't simply lose his wife, he lost a part of himself. That is why he never gave up on searching for her no matter how many years passed when most would have already moved on, because without her he was simply incomplete. Similarly for your mother, your father was the centre of her world. I'm certain that even when she left she knew and expected him to come chasing after her. In fact, even after all these years have passed I'm sure your mother deep down is still expecting your father to come and find the two of you one day. That is the kind of bond your parents share."

His grandfather's words gave Boruto a much deeper appreciation of what his mother meant to his father and vice versa. It left his young mind to contemplate what the future would hold for their shattered family.

While grandfather and grandson talked, Naruto and Hanabi had finally collapsed on to the ground from exhaustion after playing their little game of chase for quite some time. Despite that they both seemed to have huge smiles plastered across their faces.

"It has been so long since we last played like this Nii-nii. You remember all those times you, me and nee-sama would run around the Hyuga's courtyard playing chase like this?" Hanabi asked while reminiscing about old times.

"How could I ever forget? Those were the days and it was the childhood I spent with Hinata." Naruto's smile became even more heartfelt knowing that his family was finally now within his grasp once more.

"That smile – the one you would always have every time you were next to my sister, I thought you had forgotten how to smile like that after she left. No matter how much anyone tried, it was nowhere to be seen. I'm glad to see that it has now returned once more." Hanabi commented after witnessing Naruto's true genuine smile return to him after so many years. Seeing that smile brought about a thought within Hanabi's mind that she could never tell Naruto: _"If only you had let me, I would have taken sister's place in your life after she left. I know I'm a terrible person for thinking that way but I just can't help it. I've also admired you ever since we were kids. But it's not like you ever see me or any other woman in the same light as my sister. You're just so dense to all your other admirers given your status as Hokage and especially due to the fact that your marriage with Nee-sama was never made public. If you had wanted you could have easily moved on and found another woman of your choosing, yet you kept on chasing sister without ever even considering the thought of giving up on her. It's like there doesn't even exist any other woman besides her in this world that has a chance of becoming your significant other. I suppose that is one of your great points though, the dedication you have towards Nee-sama. I'm glad that you finally found her because that means you can find true happiness with her once again."_

After the initial antics were over, Hiashi took the time to explain to Boruto the abilities granted by the Byakugan and actually gave him some practical tips on how to practice using his eyes from now on. It was a fun training session for Boruto as he learned to use his eyes in ways and see things that he didn't even think of before. Hiashi even set up a routine of simple manoeuvres for him to learn as the beginning of his Gentle Fist training. With his great aptitude for learning, all in all the day turned out to very fruitful for the young Uzumaki. Once it was getting close to evening Boruto had no choice but to say goodbye to his newfound family, but they promised him that they would come to visit again and all of them would meet soon. As such Boruto rushed home to his mother feeling truly happy and content.

Naruto, Hiashi and Hanabi followed behind him not too long later and eventually they too reached the house within the forest. The two Hyuga used their Byakugan to observe the inhabitants of the house from a distance, being able to see their long lost family member once more. Although Hiashi was upset with Hinata for her decision of leaving Naruto and not trusting her clan to support her during the ordeal she faced at the hands of the masked man, he was still happy to see her safe and sound.

"I still can't quite believe it but it really is Nee-sama." Tears rolled down Hanabi's eyes after finally seeing her sister so many years later.

Even Hiashi's eyes had a bit of softness to it that wasn't always apparent. He did have a soft spot in his heart for Hinata whether he admitted it or not given that his elder daughter reminded him of her mother.

"Well, I would be lying if I said I'm not glad to see her well even after the goose chase she led the Hokage on." He said with a sigh of relief.

"Come on old man, you don't have to act so tough. I know you want Hinata to return as soon as possible. Don't you worry; I promise I'll bring her back. It's just a matter of time." Naruto replied in a tone that radiated his conviction of reuniting his family and both Hiashi and Hanabi knew that there was very little in the world that could stop Naruto once he set his mind to something. Thus after watching Hinata for a while longer the three made their way back to Konoha together.

 **Next weekend...**

It was midday on Saturday and Hinata and Boruto were currently walking through a small trail in the forest dressed in full traditional kimono and yukata respectively. They were heading towards the neighbouring village not too far away, but given that there were no other options but to walk it took almost close to an hour. That village always held a special fair this time of the year and as Hinata had promised her son, she was taking him there to enjoy the fair given her newly discovered job that had helped lighten her overall work schedule.

"Boruto, today Mama is feeling extra generous, so just on this special occasion she'll buy you anything you want from the festival. Therefore, feel free to go all out."

Boruto's eyes lit up like a light bulb in happiness as he jumped for joy, one that was worth the whole world to Hinata. Although she was always careful as a mother not to spoil her son, she thought that it wouldn't be so bad to pamper him a little every now and then, especially given that she finally had the financial capability to do so with her new job. As such they walked to the festival together hand in hand.

However, there was suddenly a very loud animalistic roar that reverberated across the forest, the sound of which stopped both mother and son in their tracks. The wildlife in the woods responded by going haywire.

"W-What was tha-" Boruto was about to ask, but before he could finish a precise job to one of his weak spots on his back made him lose his consciousness within a moment.

"Forgive me Boruto but that was something necessary mama had to do. Please rest for now." Hinata caught Boruto in her arms and placed him below the nearest tree as gently as possible.

Once she made sure that her son was safe, she turned around and walked forward for a while with her Byakugan activated and a hardened look on her face.

"COME OUT NOW!" Hinata shouted for the whole forest to hear as the roar from earlier was one Houka used in order to warn Hinata of any immediate dangers surrounding her.

Sure enough in response to her call, a man wearing a spiral mask came out of the woods to face her. "It has been a long time…Hyuga Hinata."

Hinata instantly recognised the man just from his distinctive mask alone.

"Tobi…you were the one who confronted the masked man on the night I ran away from Konoha."

"Oh, I'm surprised you still remember me after all these years."

"How could I forget? I had always wanted to thank you for saving my life and my child's back then when I was at my weakest."

"It would appear you are mistaken about my motivations. I didn't save you out of the kindness of my heart. I had far greater ulterior plans behind my actions."

Just the unnerving tone in Tobi's voice left Hinata on edge at this point. "What plans?"

"That child you possess is quite special indeed. Your enemies sought to get rid of him completely, however I see him as a golden tool that I can use to further my own cause. I've been waiting for this day to come when he would finally be ready to be molded into an instrument of war. Now that the time has finally come, I give you two options – hand him over to me in peace and we can settle this without any disputes. Or stand in my way and meet your demise. Either way, I get the child."

Hinata glared at Tobi with her Byakugan so hard that the veins in her temples bulged to the point of nearly bursting. "It would appear that I did indeed misunderstand you. The shinobi truly are a corrupt kind. That is why I wished to break my ties with them all those years ago. However, if for the sake of my one and only son I have to once again delve into my past and sully my hands with blood, then so be it. For as long as I breathe, I will NEVER let anyone take Boruto from me!"

"Then you leave me with no choice but to pry him out of your cold dead hands." Tobi replied in a truly sinister tone as he himself glared back with his Sharingan.

Thus a battle for Boruto was about to begin.

* * *

We're ending this time on a pretty big note. Next chapter will be the first fully fledged fight since this story started. I'd love to hear who you're betting on winning: Hinata or Tobi. The victor will get Boruto. Or perhaps someone interferes? Whatever the case may be, it'll be pretty serious.

From last time **gio08, Albert da Snake, SilverFang555, Trainer1232** all got my silly little reference. That being said I was amazed at the fact that **DarkManta** and **ctdiaz** picked up on the fact that last chapter was inspired by an episode of a certain hilarious anime altogether. That was subtle but great job on recognizing what anime it was. Other than that it seems a lot of you were expecting Hinata to be the one to be vising Naruto, so I hope you still liked Hiashi and Hanabi instead.

 **root:** That scenario you described of Hinata kissing Naruto in secret and Boruto finding out would indeed be hilarious, especially seeing all of their reactions afterwards. But unfortunately that wouldn't quite fit the story I'm writing. Maybe I could write an extra omake type of chapter with a what if scenario. That would be pretty interesting indeed. I'll see if I can get around to it at some point.

 **Colbalt Sunfire:** Yes, going back over it you're absolutely right. From a technical standpoint it really isn't correct for me to have Naruto be referred to as Boruto's father when writing his thoughts as that would imply Boruto knows Naruto is his father. I will refrain from doing that from now on but it might be a bit difficult for me to go back and fix every instance that mistake happened in the previous chapters. Hopefully it didn't cause too much confusion. Thank you for pointing it out.

 **Yandere shasa:** I generally try to update every one to two weeks but I can't always keep to that schedule due to work and stuff.

 **Beatrizmar,** **myzticmoon:** Thanks a bunch and trust me when I say, the future chapters will be even more overwhelming with twists and turns! We're just getting into it.

 **Guest 8:** I hope it's becoming clear that slowly and steadily Boruto is stating to see Menma (or Naruto) as a father figure. Just as you said, I think this will prove interesting when he does end up finding the true identity of his father.

 **SilverFang555:** I'm always up to hearing anything you have to say about the story :)

Okay, that is all for now. Let me know your thoughts on the chapter as always and I will see you all next time.


	18. The Prodigy Among Prodigies

**The Prodigy Among Prodigies**

* * *

A battle for Boruto…

"You have left me with no choice Hyuga Hinata. Even you do not understand the significance of the boy that that lies behind you. A child of two great clans, he is the key to the future – a tool that can one day turn the tides of war in its favour. That is why I could not allow the enemy to kill you when he was still in your womb. And that is also why I will not hesitate to cut you down where you stand in order to finally claim him for the future. Now then, witness true power – MANGEKYOU SHARINGAN!" Tobi opened both of his eyes wide and one could clearly see complex star-like patterns develop within his Sharingan, elevating them to their next stage in power. At the same time two black flaming swords formed within his hands, the special black flames emanating from them being completely inextinguishable by any normal means. "BLAZE RELEASE: FLAME CONTROL SWORDS!"

Hinata stood stunned for a moment after witnessing what took place in front of her very eyes as she simply could not believe what she was seeing. "Those eyes…are you…an Uchiha? Is it the Uchiha that are behind it all? Who ARE you?"

"I am the Uchiha's ghost…Tobi." The masked individual standing in front of Hinata replied in an eerily cold tone. "To even consider me an ally of the Uchiha is an insult beyond all other. They are my sworn enemies and these eyes, the Mangekyou Sharingan, will one day come to haunt the Uchiha clan."

"Impossible…the Mangekyou Sharingan are eyes that are talked about only in the Uchiha clan's legends. It is said that only one man, the first Hokage, Uchiha Madara was able to somehow awaken those eyes through some unknown means and as a result of their unimaginable powers none could stand before him. Because those eyes were so powerful and as no other Uchiha was able to awaken them after him, most came to even question their reality, considering them a legend for the storybooks. Yet here you stand claiming to wield the Mangekyou Sharingan."

Tobi audibly laughed at Hinata's account of his ocular powers. "These eyes are anything but a figment of one's imagination. Right here, right now you will witness the existence of a power that is only spoken of in legends. This is your final chance – step aside and hand over the child, or you will not live to regret this choice."

Even though an unnerving feeling swept over Hinata as she stood in front of a man that wielded a now legendary power – one that was the downfall of many a shinobi in history, she still stood her ground to protect the most precious person in her life. "I will NEVER allow you or anyone else to degrade my child's humanity and turn him into some kind of a tool to be used in conflicts to further your own ambitions. No matter the odds, I will protect him at all costs."

"Very well, then let us initiate the beginning to your end." Thus Tobi got into a stance with his swords, ready to charge at his enemy at moment's notice.

But it was Hinata who made the first move by shouting out to Houka as the flaming reddish-orange Leopard jumped out of forest and stood firmly beside her summoner. "I know you are not fond of conflict and neither am I, but this is one battle that we absolutely must win."

"Indeed, anything for Boruto." Houka replied, her normally coy demeanour now replaced by a razor focused one.

"FIRE RELEASE: GREAT FIRE ANNIHILATION!" Upon Hinata's command Houka exhaled what could only be described as a widespread sea of flames that engulfed everything in sight, along with their enemy and started a flash fire across the surrounding woods.

However with just one vertical slash of one of his black flame swords, Tobi parted the veritable sea of flames. "What's the matter? Is that the best you can muster Hyuga Hinata… the one who was once known as the prodigy among prodigies?"

"If you're so confident in your abilities then stand your ground and confront this! FIRE RELEASE: MAJESTIC FIRE DESTRUCTION!" Once more upon Hinata's order Houka exhaled a stream of intense flames, this time focused completely on their single target as opposed to an entire area of effect. In response Tobi held his swords in front of him in a defensive cross form and blocked the entire brunt of Hinata's attack, shrugging it off as though it was of no consequence to him whatsoever.

"Using two of the Uchiha's strongest fire style techniques, ones that were created by Madara Uchiha himself, Itachi has taught you well. Yet such flames are far too weak when put in contest against the black flames cast by my eyes."

Hinata knew at this point that the man she faced was unlike anyone she had ever faced before. If she were to win this bout, it would require power that surpassed anything an average shinobi could even comprehend. Tobi may have the Mangekyou Sharingan but she too had special eyes of her own, and there was a reason why she was once referred to as the "Prodigy among Prodigies". It was time for Hinata to live up to that epithet once more.

"Houka, we cannot afford to hold back any longer. So although this is not normally the case, I need you to take the front lines and buy me some time. Prepare to go all out!"

Houka nodded as she formed multiple flaming balls of wisps that started to float around her. Before she could take any further action however, Tobi was ready to finish the fight.

"This ends now! BURN in the inextinguishable black flames!" Tobi looked squarely at Hinata with his Mangekyou Sharingan to ignite her with his black flames, but at that very moment as a last resort Houka jumped into his line of sight, causing the black flames to erupt all over her, leading to colossal damage. But due to her ethereal nature, the flames did not remain on her for long.

Tobi now flipped his swords around, holding them by the hilt like daggers as he teleported in an instant from here he stood to several feet into the air above Hinata, ready to drop down on to her and administer a death from above.

"I DON'T THINK SO!" Houka shouted at Tobi as the wisps that she had created earlier now transferred over to Hinata and floated around her. "UCHIHA STYLE: FLAME FORMATION BARRIER!"

A red pillar of flames erupted from underneath Hinata and reached into the skies like a defensive fort, repelling Tobi and forcing him back into the ground.

" _Yet another Uchiha clan's technique…Itachi has done well as her teacher."_ Tobi said to himself inwardly as he brushed off the flames from his body, but his thought process was cut short by a heavy sense of foreboding. Within a fleeting moment he found himself crushed between two slabs of earth that tore up from the ground below on either side of him. The feeling of an immensely powerful presence and a destructive intent overcame Tobi's senses.

"Gentle Step: Tiger's Metamorphosis." Hinata uttered calmly as her technique was finally complete and from behind her emerged the other counterpart besides Houka, an ethereal yellow tiger named Yuki, the one who had trapped Tobi in his earth prison. Hinata looked over to Houka, who was still damaged severely from Tobi's attack and signalled her to retreat from the front lines. "Houka, thank you for protecting me. Come back and take your position as over watch. Let Yuki handle the rest."

Although Houka had great grievances with Yuki in terms of their overlook on matters related to Naruto in the past, she knew her role in battle. Hinata had always intended for Houka to be on over watch, attacking from long range if necessary while Yuki was the one who was always in close quarters combat, fighting with brute strength. Thus the Leopard fell back as asked.

"How long has it been since I've last been summoned into a battle, true self?" Yuki asked Hinata while briefly reminiscing of the years past.

"It certainly has been years and quite honestly I had hoped that this day would never come. But I really do have no choice in the matter this time. That man must be defeated at all costs, not for my sake, but for Boruto."

Upon hearing Hinata's words the tiger now fixated her gaze upon Tobi, a seething anger fuelling it to its very core.

"To anyone who threatens Boruto…I WILL SHOW NO MERCY!" Yuki reeled one of her paws back over her head before slamming it down on to the ground with unimaginable force, sending a shockwave through the earth directly at Tobi who barely managed to teleport out of the line of fire.

The entire forest shook uncontrollably from the raw force behind the attack and when he finally came to Tobi was in disbelief of what he saw – the entire terrain had been split in two by a chasm so deep that one could only see blackness when looking into it. He was just glad he hadn't been caught by the brunt of that attack, but as he would soon come to find out, there was no rest for the weary.

"So you wish to get up close and personal with swords? Then let's do just that – GENTLE STEP: 64 SWORDS!" The ground below crumbled as a plethora of Earthly blades tore out of ground and floated around Yuki. Without wasting even a second she dashed straight at Tobi.

As the two got into close quarters, it was a battle of swords. The floating earth swords above the tiger came crashing down upon Tobi one after another, but he anticipated each of their movement using his eyes and countered back with his own sword strikes. As the swords from both sides came into contact, Tobi's flame swords tore right through and completely destroyed Yuki's Earth swords, but more swords tore out of the ground to replace the dismantled ones, forming an endless barrage of swords strikes until eventually all 64 swords had been depleted. At this point having gone through what could only be described as an extended dance of death, both Tobi and Yuki backed off several feet from one another for a moment's respite. Or at least that's what Hinata thought.

"BURN!" Tobi screamed as he ignited the ethereal tiger in a torrent of black flames and even though the technique did not have the same long lasting effect on her as it would on any human being, it bought Tobi the time he needed to teleport close to Hinata, as he now to dashed towards her with his swords readied to strike her down.

Yet Hinata stood firm, unflinching from the enemy's sudden move.

"UZUMAKI STYLE: FLAME MAELSTROM!" Just as quickly as Tobi had closed the gap between himself and Hinata, he found himself engulfed in a searing tornado of flames cast upon him by Houka from afar, an original technique created by Hinata long ago that she had named in honour of her significant other.

Tobi barely managed to teleport out of the attack's huge area of effect but not before suffering some serious third degree burns across his body. However, that was the least of his worries because as soon as he landed on the ground he had to teleport away instantly once again in order to save himself from being completely pummeled. The tiger had landed on his position and crushed the ground with such force that it left a small crater and a thick cloud of smoke in its wake.

"You're going to pay for that! For your transgressions I will cut you down!" The tiger yelled at the top of her lungs as the smoke cleared, revealing an absolutely huge Earth sword above her. "EARTH RELEASE: PRECIPICE BLADE!"

Tobi knew just from the towering size of the blade that he could in no way counter it with what he had in his hands. Thus he slammed the two swords he currently held and combined them into one much larger weapon. "BLAZE RELEASE: FLAME CONTROL GREATSWORD!"

It was a collision of two swords of unbelievable strength and proportions, but once again it was Tobi's sword that sliced right through Yuki's and shattered it to pieces. Wasting little time and capitalising on the upper hand he currently had, Tobi instantly teleported right behind the tiger and with one heavy swing of his great sword, sent her careening through an uncountable number of trees across the forest.

"It would appear I have won the battle of the swords. This time there will be no escape for you." Tobi said to Hinata while trying to regain his breath after his partial but hard fought victory. Or so he thought until he saw a small smirk appear on Hinata's face and the ground below him glow a shade of yellow. "WHAT THE?!"

There was an ear-piercing roar that reverberated around the battlefield that literally tore through Tobi's eardrums.

"NOW YOU'VE REALLY MADE ME MAD!" The Tiger's blood curdling scream incited the very Earth itself as she refused to go down without one last fight. "WITNESS – THE EARTH'S RAGE!"

The energy from within the ground blasted out all at once, resulting in a spectacular explosion that turned the surrounding terrain into what could only be considered a wasteland.

Tobi had once again somehow managed to teleport out of the area of effect of the attack up into the sky, but the relentless assault from Hinata's two counterparts had taken its toll on him, a searing pain now shooting through his eyes. He thought he could allow them a brief yet much needed rest when he suddenly felt a presence more powerful than anything he had felt during this whole battle right behind him. Ever since the beginning of their bout, Hinata herself had not engaged Tobi directly even once, allowing her two counterparts to do that job. Yet now she was finally at point blank range to him, her whole body covered in a blue shroud of energy that resembled a lion and two lion heads around her hands. What was most horrifying however was the small black orb she was carrying in between the mouths of the two lion heads, a technique imbued with great destructive power.

 **Flashback: Many years ago after Naruto and Hinata became teammates**

Naruto held both of Hinata's hands in support as she tried her utmost to form a stable rotating sphere in between the mouths of her twin lion fists. However, the orb was currently fluctuating haphazardly, about to disappear any second.

"Focus Hinata, the key to the Rasengan is in FOCUS!"

Hearing his words Hinata pushed herself even further, yet it just wasn't enough. She was about to lose it.

"KEEP GOING! I believe you can do this, so don't let up. Concentrate on to that one single point as I've taught you during all our training sessions thus far and pour everything you have into it. YOU CAN DO THIS! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!"

Those words were the final bit of strength she needed. If Naruto believed in her then she could achieve anything, even the legendary Rasengan!

Hinata's body became shrouded by her full lion form as she extended her tail over her head as a third extension to her hands to help in focusing all of her powers in between the lion heads. She concentrated every ounce of her mind and power on to that one single point, pushing herself to her very limit and even further beyond as the sphere between her hands not only formed to the size of a Rasengan but shrunk even further, taking on a black hue unlike the Rasengan's blue due to how truly concentrated it was.

The sudden burst of power that emanated from it threw Naruto's body into the distance, but he now looked at Hinata with a smile and nodded. "NOW, let me have it!"

Hinata nodded back and charged straight at Naruto, shoving the black sphere straight into his mid-section. "RASENGAN!"

However, unlike the Rasengan that would simply send the enemy flying backwards after the hit, Hinata's concentrated sphere of energy exploded on impact and sent her careening backwards from the recoil, the shroud around her body protecting her from serious damage as the real Naruto appeared behind her, bringing her to a halt.

"Did I do it?" Hinata asked her significant other in a daze.

Naruto had a look of apprehension after seeing first-hand the destruction caused by Hinata's technique, but he smiled at her in order to show his support. "Did you do it? No, I think you've surpassed the Rasengan that my father once created."

Hinata was shocked to hear him say so.

"That technique of yours isn't a simple Rasengan. It is something even more. And given that you needed your tail in your Lion form to make it, I think we should call it…"

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

"MINI TAILED BEAST BALL!" Hinata shoved the highly concentrated orb of energy right into Tobi and even though he wanted to teleport away, all the techniques he used earlier with his eyes had taken a serious toll on them, causing his eyes to fail at that single crucial moment. Tobi ate the sphere dead on as he was sent crashing into the ground along with it, leading to an explosion that rocked the battlefield and left a large crater in its wake.

Hinata landed gracefully on to the ground and was shortly joined by her two counterparts standing on either side of her. This was Hyuga Hinata, the warrior with three forms – the Leopard who overlooked all providing a stalwart defence, the Tiger who tore through all by means of a relentless offense, and the Lioness that led them into battle as their great leader.

Not even a moment could pass before Tobi once again landed a little distance in front of Hinata. He was like a slippery eel, teleporting away into safety from every offense that was mounted against him. Perhaps that above all was his greatest strength. However this last assault was one that Tobi couldn't completely avoid and although he had managed to teleport away from the full brunt of the explosion, he had still sustained a hefty amount of damage due to failing to teleport at the onset.

Tobi dropped on to his knees and coughed a mouthful of blood that dripped through his now cracked mask. His entire body was a tattered mess – clothes torn, fractured bones, skin burnt horribly all over and a pool of blood now forming where he rested on his knees. Above all though, it was his eyes that were in the worst possible shape, bleeding so heavily that he could no longer even keep them open, let alone put them to any further use.

"Guh…my eyes…to think they'd fail me now at such a crucial moment." Tobi gasped in pain as he tried to stop the bleeding of his eyes, but to no avail. "I suppose the stories were true of Itachi Uchiha's team…team zero being the strongest squad in Konoha's history. All three members were thought to be…Kage level shinobi. You are no different it seems. With that kind of overwhelming power…I can see now why you were always referred to as the…prodigy among prodigies…the Hyuga's strongest. Then answer this Hyuga Hinata. If you possessed power of this calibre all along, why did you choose to escape from Konoha as opposed to standing your ground with Uzumaki Naruto and fighting the enemy all those years ago?"

Hinata shook her head side to side as she stood with her arms folded across her chest. "I think you misunderstand. I didn't run away from Konoha because I thought I couldn't defeat the masked man or his accomplices. Quite the contrary. If I would have remained by Naruto-kun's side and fought them together, we had as good a chance as any to wipe their plague off the face of Konoha. Yet I ran away back then because I feared that my son's life would be in danger within that village and that one small mishap would be all it took for me to lose him. The story of Naruto-kun's parents made that point abundantly clear, that even if we were ultimately victorious over our enemies, that victory would most certainly come at a price, and that price I wasn't willing to pay. To me the safety of my son was far greater than fleeting victory that I could achieve for Konoha by standing my ground and fighting for that village. I do not hold such sentiments as Naruto-kun where I can protect everyone and everything bar none. I believe in a reality where concessions have to be made and sacrifices are a necessity in order to protect that which is most precious to you. Such is the nature of the shinobi. And although unlike Naruto-kun I may not believe I'm capable of protecting everything, I will do everything in my power to protect that one single person that I care for above all. I WILL protect Boruto at all costs with my very life, from YOU and ANYONE ELSE that means him any harm!"

Those words reminded Tobi of a certain person that had once gone through a similar ordeal and he could only smile inwardly as a result despite the severe pain his body was going through right now.

Hinata looked at her two counterparts and they all shared a knowing glance, coming to terms with one another after many years. She was finally ready to unleash her full power.

"This is where it ends!" Hinata announced in a remorseless tone and in response the tiger and the leopard both dug their tails into the ground. Perhaps the strongest of the many abilities that Hinata possessed, her fire and earth based powers spread throughout the land and started to change it completely. The ground was literally melting from the immense heat and before long it came to a point where it was no longer even possible for anyone other than Hinata herself to remain standing on the ground. The heat that emanated from the ground started to affect the atmosphere as well, causing the sunlight to become even more intense. A desolate wasteland overcome by scorching heat, such was the battlefield in which Hinata thrived at her maximum power.

"This is a battlefield suited to a true Hyuga, one that burns under the heat of the sun - A Land of Endings." With those absolute words Hinata took her stance to bring about a final end to this battle. "Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!"

Tobi jumped from debris to debris in order to keep himself from being incinerated by the burning battlefield, but he knew that there really wasn't anywhere else to run any longer, especially given that he no longer had access to the powers of his Mangekyou Sharingan. The battle truly was over. "I will acknowledge your strength and concede defeat this time. It is unfortunate that my eyes had to fail me, but next time that will most certainly not be the case. I will have that child, one way or another."

"There won't be a next time – I'm ending this RIGHT NOW!" Hinata jumped towards Tobi and was a few seconds away from connecting one of her lion fists when suddenly Tobi pulled out a special kunai, one that had three prongs.

"Just in case my eyes failed me, I brought this as insurance. Farewell Hyuga Hinata. May we meet again…soon."

There was a flash of yellow and in an instant Tobi disappeared as Hinata went right through where he stood and punched the ground with immense force with her lion fist. But there was no target left. Hinata could no longer sense or even see Tobi in her Byakugan's field of view. He was gone in a moment, as unbelievable as it may seemed. Tobi truly was like a slippery eel.

"Victory is ours for now, but at what cost?" Hinata looked all around her and there was nothing but devastation in sight. What was once a calm forest bustling with plant and animal life had now been reduced to a burning wasteland. The sight brought nothing but pain to Hinata as the battle had decimated a section of the once beautiful forest. "The shinobi truly are a vile kind, destroying everything in their path for their own cause."

"True self…we didn't have any other choice." Yuki looked down at the ground in remorse as she understood Hinata's pain and the casualties brought about by conflict.

"Princess, although fighting brings about destruction and great pain, you were at least able to protect something, even if it is just one thing." Houka pointed towards the one odd tree that still stood firm amidst the wasteland, the tree under which Hinata had left Boruto. It was the one tree Hinata and her counterparts had managed to protect amidst all the carnage in order to keep Boruto safe.

Hinata walked over to Boruto to see him sleeping as soundly as ever under the peaceful shade of the tree. The sight brought about tears to her eyes as she grasped her son in a tight embrace. "Mother will always protect you at all costs Boruto. For your sake, so that you may be safe and happy, she will endure whatever burden or pain that may come her way."

Thus Hinata along with her counterparts quelled the raging battlefield, bringing it to a state of calm once more so that it could one day recover from this trauma once more. As such the Lioness along with the Tiger and the Leopard returned home with their baby cub.

* * *

Finally, the very first full battle of this story. I've left some interesting tidbits throughout this chapter in regards to Tobi's identity. Do you think he is the same person as expected, or perhaps someone else? In this story he could be anyone. In fact his character will play a very big part in the plot itself from now on.

Anyway, I wanted focus this chapter on Hinata's abilities, in particular because in the previous encounters Hinata had with enemies such as in the second chapter where she was ambushed after nearly 8 years of not having been in conflict and in the flashback when she ran away from Konoha where she was poisoned, in both instances she didn't quite get to show her true potential due to unfortunate circumstances. So this chapter demonstrates what she is truly capable of at her best and what her "Prodigy among Prodigies" title truly meant. I think most of you expected Tobi to win but there is much more to Tobi's abilities that will come into play later on in the story. But Hinata is no slouch in this story either.

 **Trainer1232, Reviewer** : I need to thank you guys for pointing out the stupid mistake I made last chapter where Hiashi called out Naruto by name in front of Boruto. I literally proof read to make sure I didn't make that mistake and what you do you know, I made that exact mistake. But I've corrected it now, so thank you for pointing it out.

 **krrish14patel** : Although Kushina is alive, Naruto and the others don't know about it. So he's considered an orphan.

 **byunhime** : Actually Naruto and Hinata's meeting will not be at the end of the story. There is much more that will happen afterwards.

 **CainOmega106:** When Hinata is saying that the shinobi are corrupt, it's similar to how people say "humans are corrupt". It doesn't mean she's insulting her own family and friends, just that it's a general statement about the nature of shinobi. Or at least that's how I meant it.

 **naru nana 7 sama, Montserrat, magicofantasy, misao97, Reading Pixie** : Thanks a lot for your kind words and glad you liked last chapter :)

That is all for now. As always I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the chapter. Until next time, take care and be well.


	19. The Namikaze Family

**The Namikaze Family**

* * *

 **In the Village Hidden in the Rain…**

Kushina stood atop one of the many tall skyscrapers that littered the skyline of Amegakure. She was looking down from one of the edges of the rooftop and saw what could only be described as ants walking on the ground far below even though they were actual people. Despite quite the spectacular sight Kushina's mind was elsewhere. The concern was clear on her face as she waited for a certain person's arrival. Her wish was answered as someone entered through the door to the rooftop, but it wasn't the one she was hoping for.

"KUSHINA-SAMA!" The young man who just arrived shouted at the top of his lungs, now gasping for breath. "HE'S BACK! PLEASE, YOU HAVE TO COME WITH ME TO THE HOSPITAL RIGHT NOW!"

The expression on Kushina's face changed instantly as she got a clear idea of where things were going. Not saying a word she ran after the messenger as the two made their way down the building and to the central hospital in Amegakure. It wasn't long before she arrived at the Intensive Care Unit and the young man ushered her in, no longer being able to accompany her any further to that restricted part of the hospital. Kushina ran across the hallway, passing room after room until she eventually reached the glass window outside the surgery room and looked through in fear. Just as she had expected but not wished for with all her might, her horrors were realised.

There he was, Minato Namikaze, within the surgery room surrounded by a plethora of doctors and surgeons who were all tending to the countless injuries he had sustained during his battle with Hinata. The sight was horrific as the bed was soaked in his blood, but the worse part were his eyes, which were in so much pain that Minato was screaming in agony.

"MINATO!" Kushina couldn't take it any longer as she burst through the door in concern for her husband.

Instantly one of the doctors, Karin Uzumaki, grabbed hold of Kushina and forcefully took her back outside. "Please Kushina-san, I understand you're concerned for him but you must leave this to us for now. We'll take for of him."

"But Minato!"

"He'll be okay. Trust me. For now please just wait outside until we've taken care of his injuries." Karin consoled Kushina and sat her down outside on a bench before quickly returning back in order to continue on with the treatment.

Hours passed, hours that almost felt like an eternity to Kushina as she sat outside the operation theatre with tears in her eyes. This was after all her idea, her doing, and Minato was now paying the price. She felt sick inside. She was lost. Perhaps her plans were misguided all along, she questioned herself. With those thoughts in mind Kushina could do nothing but wait.

Eventually the doctors started to exit the room and Minato was moved out of the Intensive Care Unit to a patient's room in the hospital. Before Kushina could visit her husband however, Karin pulled her aside in order to speak personally with her.

"Kushina-san, we need to talk." She said in a very urgent tone.

"W-What's the matter Karin?" Kushina questioned in a somewhat broken voice as she did not like the serious look on her fellow Uzumaki's face.

"Your husband suffered a lot of injuries in whatever confrontation he was in earlier. Burns, fractured bones, bruises, cuts, you name it and he's probably been inflicted by all such ailments. Although his injuries were bad, we were ultimately able to treat most of his wounds or at least patch them up so that they will recover over time. However, I need to speak to you about one particular condition of his that we simply cannot treat, and that is in regards to his eyes."

Kushina took in a deep breath in order to prepare for whatever Karin had to say.

"As you know, we've been monitoring his Mangekyou Sharingan for a while and although we had surmised this before, we can now firmly say that the more he uses the powers granted by those eyes the more his physical and ocular condition deteriorates. Unfortunately we have very little data to go by when it comes to those eyes given that we do not know of any other wielders, but just from our observations so far it seems that the slow deterioration of one's eyesight and health is a side effect of using the Mangekyou Sharingan. That is what is happening with Minato-san. Slowly but surely his condition is getting worse with each use. Perhaps this may be because those weren't his eyes to begin with and that he's not an Uchiha, so the side effects are maybe much more severe, we do not know. But what we do understand clearly now is that if he continues overusing the eyes' abilities, he will eventually go blind and his health will get much worse, perhaps one day even threatening his very life. That is the price that has to be paid in return for those powers as they are almost like a terminal illness that eats away at him the more they are used." Karin explained in a very sombre yet serious tone. "I know that we've talked about this matter before but I really did want to elaborate on the gravity of this situation. His eyesight and perhaps his very life is at stake here. So I urge you talk to him yourself and request him to temper his use of those eyes for his own well being."

Having said what she needed to say Karin left the older Uzumaki on her own so that she could visit her husband. Kushina slowly made her way towards Minato's room with her mind in deep contemplation after the information she received from her fellow clan member, knowing full well what the Mangekyou Sharingan meant to Minato. Once she reached the room she pushed her thoughts aside and entered with all the strength she could muster.

First sight was awful. Nearly Minato's whole body was plastered up but it was his eyes that were in the worst possible condition and thus were sealed shut by a thick layer of bandage. Despite not being able to see, he could still sense his wife's presence.

"Kushina?"

Kushina sat on the chair next to his bed and gently caressed his hand, but at this point she could no longer hold back her tears and started to cry ever so loudly. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all this Minato!"

Minato was a little taken aback by the sudden outbreak. "Whoa! There's nothing for you to be sorry about. I'm the one who screwed up big time here."

"That's not it. This was my plan all along for you to confront her. All of this happened to you because of me. I was the one who put you in this risk."

Minato gently took his wife's hand and grabbed hold of it. "Kushina, I said this before and I'll say it again – I believe in you and I think that your plan will work out in the long run, even if some sacrifices have to be made along the way. This is a pretty small price to pay. And I'm still alive right? It won't be long before I recover once again. So all is well for now."

It was at this point that Kushina had some bad news to discuss with her husband. "Minato…we need to talk about those eyes. The doctors told me that your condition has been worsening the more you use those eyes. At this rate…at this rate you will eventually go blind from overuse of the Mangekyou Sharingan and your health may deteriorate to the point of posing a threat to your very life."

"I know that." Minato replied in a matter of fact tone, one that shocked his wife. "I know better than anyone else the side effects of using these eyes. I can feel my eyesight getting worse and the physical toll it takes on my body every time I use them. They even gave out on me in the middle of that last fight. But I don't care, because these eyes are more than just eyes to me. They are a sacrifice and a gift from one of my most precious people who entrusted me with them so that I could one day overcome our adversaries once and for all. The Mangekyou Sharingan is absolutely necessary for that purpose and that is why I have to push myself to master its powers."

"Obito would never want you to go blind using his eyes. That would defeat the whole purpose of him giving you his eyes in the first place, so that you could regain the eyesight that you lost!"

"Obito gave up his very life in order to protect me 20 years ago and he entrusted me with his eyes so as to create an opportunity for the future in which we can defeat the evil that lurks within Konoha. I cannot by any means let his sacrifice be in vain, even if it means I end up going blind. My powers by themselves are simply not enough. That is why I HAVE to unlock the true potential of the Mangekyou Sharingan and I am far from it. The fight with Hinata proved that quite clearly." Minato pointed at his own battered body to illustrate his point. "To think that I thought I could be evenly matched with her just using the Mangekyou Sharingan which I haven't even fully mastered, I deserved to have her wipe the floor with me. Facing a true adversary like her, it is very clear that I have much more to learn about these eyes. I need to be able to endure the pain that comes with using them even further. That is the only way I can uphold Obito's sacrifice and avenge his death one day."

Kushina was at a loss for words given that she understood the great sacrifice Obito made many years ago. If not for him Minato would not be here beside her. "I just want you to be safe Minato. I don't want to lose you like I nearly lost everything all those years ago. So please, I'm begging you, be careful with those eyes. Don't overuse them. I'm sure Obito would say the same if he was here. He would want you to see...to live."

Minato sighed while feeling the real emotion behind his wife's voice. He didn't want to see her sad like this. "Fine…don't worry. Although I can't promise I won't use them in battle in the future, I'll be more careful and control myself when it comes to using them from now on."

Kushina was relieved, a smile finally returning to her face. "So it seems that Hinata did a number on you huh? She's lived up to her reputation from when she and Naruto were on the same team."

"Trust me when I say she's strong. Way stronger than I envisioned. I know she's Hiashi's daughter so this is to be expected but I was surprised. Even in the end she never really did use her full power before I retreated. And this is after 8 years of being out of action completely. I can only imagine how powerful she must have been during her prime. I would hate to face her then." Minato joked with a smile on his face. "I guess your son found a pretty amazing wife."

It was at this point at the mention of Naruto that Kushina's face took a more concerned turn once more. "Minato…you know what's next right? I don't know about this anymore, not after what happened to you today."

"As planned...my next target is Naruto himself. Put your faith in my abilities a little more Kushina. I was once chosen to be the 4th Hokage after all." Minato replied with no hesitation in his voice despite understanding why Kushina would be worried after the outcome of his bout with Hinata. "Don't worry, I'll be more careful this time, especially since I don't intend on relying solely on my eyes. It has been 20 years since I've stood face to face with Naruto. I'll be honest, I can't wait. This is one confrontation that I'm really looking forward to, one between father and son. I know he's the Hokage and all but I'm excited to see first-hand truly how strong he has gotten. That and of course to further our plans to the next stage."

"I get that you're excited and all, but remember that you're supposed to just fight the two of them and set the plan in motion. You're not trying to kill or hurt them badly, but don't get yourself killed out there either. SO NO MANGEKYOU SHARINGAN AGAINST NARUTO!" Kushina ordered in a truly fierce tone. "It's for your own good to give it some rest. You're strong enough by yourself to stand up to Naruto."

"O-Okay…okay. I get it. As I said I'll stick to my usual abilities so that this doesn't happen again. Now I just have to do the boring part of waiting until I recover from these injuries."

"Well, you aren't getting any younger, so some rest will do you good, especially given what is to come in the future. But I'm sorry Minato. I'm sorry for turning you into the bad guy like this." Kushina apologised with all her heart.

"It's fine. This is all for the greater good, so I'm sure it'll all ultimately work out. To that end I'll do my best, even if I have to play the role of a villain."

Given the challenges that lie ahead, both Minato and Kushina sat in each other's company and discussed their future, giving each other support. They were after all a couple that had gone through many highs and lows in their lives together, ones that had solidified their relationship into something special.

 **Elsewhere in Hinata's house…**

Boruto found himself on his bed at home. It seemed quite surprising considering that he was going to the festival with his mother earlier. Yet now he was in his room. He was about to ponder the meaning behind his current situation when he heard loud crashing noises coming from the living room. Worried about his mother's wellbeing he instantly jumped out of his bed and went to his door, opening it ever so slightly to peek out into the living room.

The place was an absolute mess, furniture broken into pieces and all sorts of shattered remains of objects lay scattered on the floor. It was almost as though a storm had passed through the living room. In the midst of that chaos, Hinata stood there crying. Tears rolled down her eyes uncontrollably as she looked more upset than Boruto had ever seen her. He was about to get out of his room and go to his mother when the young boy realised that she wasn't alone. There was a man standing in front of her, one who was presumably the cause of the current dismal state of affairs. What was most shocking however was the fact that Boruto knew this man upon sight. He was someone who was all too familiar to him, a man with blue eyes and blonde hair. He was none other than his sensei, and unknown to him, his father – Naruto Uzumaki.

Boruto could feel their emotions just from the look in their eyes. They stared right into each other's souls, making it look like they had known each other throughout the ages. Sparks were flying between the two of them as they were currently locked in a severe confrontation, with everything around them embroiled in utter chaos.

Unbeknownst to Boruto, his parents were standing face to face for the first time ever since his birth. However, the reunion was anything but peaceful.

* * *

Well, quite a few "bombshells" this chapter but next chapter should be something special. Are you looking forward to it? Because I sure am about writing it. As for Minato's role as Tobi and why he's doing what he's doing, all of this will be explained later, but for now I'd love to know why you think he's attacking Naruto and Hinata.

That is all I have for now. Let me know your thoughts as always and I will see you all next time for something special indeed.


	20. An Odd Reunion

**An Odd Reunion**

I know you guys have been anticipating this chapter for a while since I left everyone with quite a cliffhanger last time (when do I not lol), but I was out of country for work and my laptop decided to break at the same time during the trip. So here we are. Anyway, enough with the talking, let's get on with the show.

* * *

Hinata in a fit rage threw the closest object she could find at Naruto, which he promptly dodged with his ninja reflexes. It crashed against the wall and smashed to pieces, littering the floor with even more broken mess.

"WHY ARE YOU HERE?" She screamed as she threw yet another item at him that he once again avoided. "WHY HAVE YOU SHOWN UP IN OUR LIVES ONCE AGAIN?!"

"Calm down and let's talk this through Hinata." Naruto replied back as calmly as possible but unfortunately for him Hinata was having none of it.

"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down with you here? After all these years you think you can waltz right back in and make everything normal again? STOP JOKING WITH ME!"

"JUST LISTEN TO ME HINATA!" Naruto raised his own voice this time in the hopes of reaching his wife.

"THERE IS NOTHING FOR ME TO LISTEN TO! NEITHER IS THERE ANYTHING FOR US TO TALK ABOUT! LEAVE NOW!" Hinata ordered at the top of her lungs. Tears were rolling down her eyes non-stop yet at the same time her Byakugan was fully activated, giving her a menacing yet dismal appearance. She was a tattered mess right now emotionally.

"I'm not leaving, not until you've listened to what I have to say. I love you too much to simply walk away after 8 years of chasing after you!"

That was it. The words "I Love You" had pushed Hinata over the edge as she dashed towards Naruto and jabbed him square in his stomach and sent him flying backwards into the kitchen area as he crashed into a cabinet that stored all sorts of kitchen utilities which went flying everywhere and landed on the ground along with Naruto with a loud crash.

Boruto gasped in shock as he watched from within his room but Naruto simply raised his head once more and smiled at Hinata. "It would appear your feelings for me haven't changed much either. If this was back in the day and you were truly intending to hurt me, you could have easily knocked me out cold with that one jab. Yet that hit was more like a gentle little poke at one of my sweet spots. You were always like this back then, not ever wanting to hurt me during our training sessions despite how much I told you it was okay. You haven't changed at all and neither have your feelings for me."

"I'VE HEARD ENOUGH!" Hinata proclaimed as she went for yet another jab, but this time Naruto grabbed her hand and pinned her up against the nearest wall.

"I'm sorry but I'll have you listen to me even if it is a bit forcefully." Naruto replied with a deadly serious tone of his own. "Our relationship, our feelings were never so fleeting that they could be wiped away by just years of separation. Both you and I know this in our hearts whether you admit it or not. However, this is no longer about just the two of us. There is a child who has also become involved at the centre of this mess. That is a reality we cannot ignore."

Hinata's eyes widened for a second at the mention of her son who she loved more than her very life. "W-What about him?"

"Have you thought about how Boruto feels about all of this? You and I may have our grievances but how does he feel about growing up without a father? Have you really thought that through?"

There was a look of hesitation in Hinata's eyes before she worked up the confidence to express herself once more. "Boruto…I've done my best to take care of him…to protect him all by myself. I will continue to do so. Everything I've done, it was all for him. Even if he doesn't have a father, it was for his best."

"You may feel that way Hinata and you did do everything with his best interests in mind, but that doesn't mean this is what he actually wants. Do you really think that he is okay with never being able to see his father, let alone being around him? You know better than anyone else that deep inside Boruto wants a father figure in his life. Do you really think you can play both the role of his mother AND father at the same time? Do you really think you can play my role in his life?"

Naruto's questioning left Hinata speechless. She knew what her son truly wanted, that he wanted to see his father, get to know him and have a normal family life. She knew that better than anyone else. Yet that was never to be because of her decision. She believed with all her heart that the choices she made were indeed for his best but at the same time she couldn't help but feel guilty for separating a son from his father.

"Give me one chance." Hinata raised her head at Naruto's request. "I plead you to just give me one chance. It doesn't have to be like this. You don't have to shoulder all this burden by yourself. I'm here. I've always been here. And I'll always be here no matter how much time may pass. Just put your faith in the promise I made that I'd protect the two of you at all costs. It's not too late. Together we can give Boruto the life that he wants and quite frankly deserves. What you do say Hinata? If not for ourselves, let's do this for Boruto – our son. Please!"

Naruto held out his right hand forward towards his wife, hoping and praying with all his heart that she would accept his offer for a reunion. It took a bit, perhaps half a minute which seemed like an eternity to Naruto, but to his absolute shock and awe he saw Hinata place her hand on top of his, signifying her acceptance of his proposal. Naruto didn't know whether he wanted to jump for joy or cry. He was in cloud nine and stunned in position. Once he regained some of his control he did the daring thing of pulling Hinata in close to him and wrapped her in a gentle embrace.

"You won't regret this." He raised her head with his index finger and whispered to her ever so lightly before going in for a kiss to seal the deal once more.

But before he could do so Hinata pressed her own index finger on his lips to stop him in his tracks. "Don't you think you're taking one step too early? We've barely even gotten back together."

"In that case how about we start from the very beginning? Do you remember the first day after we got married? Let's enact that day once more. Would you go out on a date with me?" Naruto asked with a hint of nervousness to his voice despite the fact that he had taken Hinata out on many a date before and that she was his wife. Somehow this just felt like a new beginning for them.

Hinata however decided to play a little hard to get. "What makes you think you deserve a date with me?"

"I see how it is. So it would appear that I have to earn myself a date. Very well, in that case how about we play a game on that and if I win I get to take you out on a date?" Naruto asked while pointing at the video game console sitting below the TV on the other side of the living room, two items that had somehow miraculously survived their onslaught earlier.

"You want me to play a game with you? And do pray tell why I should accept this challenge?"

Naruto now had a mischievous grin on his face as he knew exactly how to push his wife's buttons. "What's the matter Hinata, are you scared of facing me? Perhaps the "Prodigy among Prodigies" is not so prodigious when it comes to video games."

"YOU'RE ON!" Hinata fell for it hook, line and sinker. "Don't think you'll get an easy victory because I'm new to this. I'm pretty experienced with video games given that I always play them with Boruto. To become involved with your child's hobbies, that's what it means to be a good parent."

Naruto gave a confident smirk in response. "Bring it!"

 **15 minutes later…**

"I WIN!" Naruto shouted in joy as Hinata was left flabbergasted and with her mouth agape. It was a shutout victory.

"How is this p-possible? How are you t-this good?"

"Don't underestimate a man who's bored out of his mind at work and tries to sneak in as much game time as he can whenever he's free."

Hinata now had a deadpanned look on her face in response. "Naruto-kun…what have you been doing with your life ever since I left?"

"That's beside the point!" Naruto replied in a flustered tone. "Anyway, I won so that means you're coming out on a date with me as promised."

"I'd love to but I have some work that needs to be done at the bakery today."

"Work? If it's money that you're worried about I've got you covered. Just name the amount that you need and I'll arrange it for you. It's my duty to take care of the family after all."

"That's not it. This isn't about money. A customer ordered for me to bake a cake for a special for them. I gave them my word and I cannot go back on my word because that is my-" Hinata stopped realising what she was about to say.

"Because that is your ninja way." Naruto finished her sentence for her with a smile. "As much as you say you've changed, deep inside you're still the same. Very well, I understand. How about this? Let's have our date at your bakery. I'll help you out with your work and once we've finished we can go out as planned."

Hinata was a little surprised at first at Naruto's offer but she nodded enthusiastically. Working together with him after so many years would certainly be exciting. Thus without wasting much time Hinata got ready and the two headed out to the village together.

Boruto had watched everything unfold thus far in shock but he needed to know more. This was all unbelievable to him. As such he also followed after his parents.

It wasn't long before Naruto and Hinata reached the bakery. Although the store was closed at the moment, the two were inside at the back getting ready to start work. Boruto posted up next to the back door and activated his Byakugan so that he could see and hear what was going on inside.

"So, what do I do? How can I help?" Naruto asked like an excited little child.

Hinata started off the usual routine of baking by taking out a large metal bowl and cracking a bunch of eggs into them. She then pulled out an egg beater from the shelf and handed it to Naruto along with an apron for him to wear, who gave her a bit of a perplexed look.

"Naruto-kun, I want you to use this egg beater to whisk these eggs until they are completely even in consistency. I need to open up the shop so your help would be appreciated. Plus if we're to go out on that date of ours we'll need to multitask."

"Aye-aye master! Leave it to me!" Naruto gave a brief salute before taking the egg beater off of his wife's hand, putting on the white apron and going to work.

Hinata saw how diligently her husband was working and decided to leave him with the task at hand as she went to the front to open up shop. It was an easy enough task, or so she thought at the time because once came back what she saw could only be described as an absolute mess. Naruto had somehow managed to splash the eggs all over himself and the floor, leaving barely anything on the bowl itself.

"Ahhhh what have you done?!" Hinata exclaimed in horror of what she saw while trying to salvage whatever little egg that she could on to the bowl.

"I-I'm sorry. I think I used too much force and the eggs just flew everywhere." Naruto explained in a very dejected tone.

Hinata being the kind soul that she was couldn't help but feel bad for her husband and ended up consoling him instead. "It's okay. I'll just start again."

"I'm really sorry Hinata. Please let me make up for it somehow." While Naruto was apologising a bell rang from the front of the store signifying that a customer was at the counter. "Oh it would appear a customer is here. I'll go serve them; you can continue making the cake."

"But Naruto-kun do you know how to use the cash register?"

"Don't you worry about that. I'm a trained shinobi after all. I can figure that much out."

Although Naruto rushed off energetically to meet the customer up front, Hinata couldn't help feel a little worried. Despite that she decided to put his faith in him…which only came back to bite her in the backside within a minute.

"Hinaaataaaaa~" A visibly distressed Naruto peeked to the back of the store and called out to his wife in distress. "I think the cash machine hates me."

"W-What happened?" Hinata rushed to the front of the store only to find that Naruto had somehow managed to charge the customer one million for a pack of biscuits. "I'm really sorry. He's new to all this. I'll take care of it right now."

Hinata quickly rectified her husband's mistake and charged the customer appropriately.

"I'm really sorry Hinata." Naruto apologised once more, this time even more dejected than before. "I guess the cash machine is harder to operate than I thought."

"Even Boruto can use it with ease." Hinata replied as a matter of fact kind of way which caused Naruto's eyes to start to water. "OH NO PLEASE DON'T FEEL BAD! I didn't mean to berate you or anything. There wasn't any harm done, so it's no big deal."

"But I want to help you somehow Hinata. I really do. Please tell me how."

Even though Hinata was reluctant at this point to entrust Naruto with any more responsibilities, his child-like pleading got to her. "Okay okay I'll see what you can do."

As Hinata prepared the cake and put it in the oven she realised that she was running out of eggs for the store and needed to go pick up a new batch.

"Naruto-kun, I have a new assignment for you. We've run out of eggs so I'll need to go to my supplier and pick up more, so I need you to watch the cake that's in the oven. All you have to do is take it out of the oven 15 minutes from now okay? It has to be exactly 15 minutes, any longer and it'll burn."

Naruto nodded with confidence. "You can leave it to me and rest assured that I'll take the cake out as instructed. You can go run your errand with peace of mind."

Hinata gave him a wry smile as she left the store. Although she couldn't help but be worried after the previous mess ups, even Naruto couldn't screw this up…right? Right?

Wrong.

As Hinata was returning back to the store after picking up the eggs, she could smell the odd yet all too familiar scent of something burning coming from her bakery.

" _Oh no!"_ She thought inwardly as she ran into the store only to find her worst fears turned into reality as Naruto stood there holding a completely black burnt cake in his hand and tears in his eyes.

"I'm sorry…I lost track of time."

"Alright that's it. Just sit down somewhere and relax. I think you've done enough damage for one day." Hinata finally having more than enough decided it was time to take action and put Naruto out of commission for both his and her wellbeing.

"Hai…" Naruto replied with teary eyes as he went to the corner of the store and curled up in sadness.

Hinata once again started from zero and baked the cake from scratch, even serving incoming customers in the midst of it all. After some efficient work she finally finished the cake along with all the decorations to go with it. Once the customer who had ordered the cake came in and picked it up, thanking Hinata for her hard work, she closed up shop and came back inside to talk to her husband, who was still sitting in the corner looking dejected.

Hinata kneeled down next to him and gently caressed his face to make him feel better. "Come on, you don't have to actually be depressed over what I said earlier. I know there were hick ups but I appreciate your help, even if it didn't quite work out positively. Just having you around gives me the motivation to keep working hard even more. So here's a little gift from me, some cake I made especially for you."

Naruto looked down at the most beautiful slice of cake he had honestly ever seen in his life on the small plate and his face lit up in joy. As he took a bite out of it that joy spread through his mouth and sent shivers down his body. It was so unbelievably sweet and delicious.

"Thank you Hinata. This is the best cake I've ever had. You're simply amazing at baking and everything that you do." He complimented with all his heart.

"Thank you." Hinata couldn't help but smile in response. "I'm just glad that you're enjoying it."

Once he finished eating, the couple left the store and went out on their aforementioned date. They walked hand in hand through the business district of the village doing window shopping and the usual stuff couples do on dates. To them just walking together while holding each other's hands after all these years was more than either one could ask for.

As they walked while filled with a sense of happiness that they had missed out on over the past eight years, they stumbled across a jewellery store with all sorts of expensive ornaments on display. Hinata having lived under a very tight budget over the years never even considered any kind of frivolous expenses for herself, instead spending any extra money she had left over for Boruto. Thus her eyes drifted on to a very beautiful yet traditional gold ring with a diamond on top. She only looked at it for a second before quickly dragging her eyes back and starting to walk forward, but Naruto noticed this and brought her to a stop.

"Hinata, let's go into this store. I want to buy you something."

"Oh no, that's not necessary. You don't need to do that. I'm not interested in buying any jewellery."

"Come on Hinata, stop treating me like a stranger. I know we've been apart for a while now but we're still family. You may not be interested in buying anything but I am. Is it really so wrong for a husband to give his wife a gift?" Naruto questioned to which Hinata appeared a little apprehensive, but at least she wasn't outright denying him anymore. "Let's at least go in for a bit. It won't hurt to take a look inside."

Although a bit reluctant at first, she didn't see any reason to deny his request. As such the two entered the store together and started to look around. It had been so long since Hinata entered a jewellery store that she almost felt out of place. Despite the fact that she was originally from a very rich and privileged background, for the past eight years she lived a rather financially constrained lifestyle. Not that she regretted it one bit but it left her feeling a bit uneasy when it came to making any extravagant expenses for herself. Regardless Naruto kept looking around until his eyes fell on a gold necklace that he thought would fit Hinata perfectly. As such he asked the store clerk if they could try it on but as Hinata was handed the chain to put on, she noticed the hefty price tag to go along with it. She really didn't feel comfortable after all about incurring such a huge cost on to Naruto and as such promptly returned the necklace to the store clerk.

"I really don't think I'm interested in buying any jewellery after all. Thank you for your time." She said to the store clerk before almost dragging Naruto out of the place. Once outside she could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"What happened Hinata? Why the rush to get out? You didn't even try it on. I thought it would have looked good on you."

"I appreciate your gesture Naruto-kun but I really didn't feel comfortable buying anything right now. You have to understand that it's been a long time since we were last together and things have changed. You may have still been very well off but I've lived a much different life with Boruto. I hope you understand."

"I get it. I'm sorry if I was being insensitive. Let's move on. I'm getting hungry about now. How about you? Would you like to get something to eat?"

Naruto's inquiry gave Hinata a great idea. "Actually Naruto-kun, I was thinking that if you are okay with it, would you like for me to cook a meal for you?"

Instantly Naruto's eyes lit up like light bulbs as he grabbed Hinata's hands in his own. "More than anything else, I would love to try out your cooking once again after all these years!"

"Okay in that case let's go buy the ingredients. I'll make you your favourite beef bowl ramen, if it's still your favourite that is."

"Oh it certainly is. Let's not waste any time. Let's get going!"

The couple went around to the grocery stores to buy all the ingredients necessary before heading over to Naruto's mansion. During this whole time, Boruto had followed his parents around the village and was now also in front of the mansion as well. Everything he witnessed thus far was still unbelievable to him but one thing he noticed for certain was that his mother seemed happier right now unlike he had ever seen before. Given his curiosity to find out more about this newfound relationship, Boruto snuck into the mansion and posted up right outside the kitchen where his mother was currently getting ready to cook while Naruto made small talk with her about their years apart. This lasted for a while until the two moved over to the large table in the dining room next door to start their meal together.

"This looks and smells amazing!" Naruto's eyes glistened at the hot piping bowl of ramen that was in front of him and his mouth watered as a result.

"Let's hope that it tastes good." Hinata looked at her own bowl of ramen and felt proud of the outcome. She did make ramen from time to time for Boruto, who had gained a liking towards that dish similar to his father, albeit not to the same crazy extent.

Naruto took one sip of the broth and his taste buds were sent into culinary heaven. He was literally crying out of happiness, no words left to describe how amazing it tasted. It was after all a nostalgic flavour that only came from Hinata's cooking. This wasn't just another bowl of ramen to Naruto. It was a bowl of ramen infused with his wife's love. The whole experience made him highly emotional.

"Y-You don't have to cry Naruto-kun. It's can't be THAT good." Hinata tried to calm him down but to no avail.

"No, this truly is special, more than I could ever hope to describe with words. I'm just so glad that I get to have your cooking after all these years. I believed that I would one day and my dream came true. I'm really happy that we are back together like this once again."

His heartfelt confession made Hinata's heart flutter once more just like their younger days as a couple. "I'm glad that we are back together as well."

Not saying anything else but just enjoying each other's company after so many years, they completed their meal together. After having finished eating and cleaning up, Naruto suddenly stood face to face with her, confusing her a little bit.

"Hinata, I want to give you something I bought earlier." Naruto explained as he pulled out a little box from his pocket and opened it to show the gold ring with the diamond on top that Hinata's eyes fell upon earlier in the day. "It is a gift from me to you…from a husband to his wife. I want this to be a small token, a symbol of our reunion. Please accept it!"

Hinata could almost feel the nervousness in Naruto's voice. It was almost as though he was proposing to her once more and it only brought about fond memories of their past. Thus without hesitation she held her right hand forward and gave him a silent nod. Naruto responded by taking her hand and putting on the ring on her ring finger, once again re-establishing their relationship for good. The reunion was now truly complete.

To Hinata's shock Naruto then picked her off the ground bridal style and started to walk out of the dining room and upstairs.

"W-Where are we going?" Hinata asked in a shy tone, knowing exactly where her husband was taking her.

"Where do you think?" He asked back mischievously as Naruto pushed the door to his bedroom open with one foot and entered with his wife at hand. He walked over to his rather spacious bed and gently placed Hinata on it. Before long he himself got into bed with her, crawling up on top of her. The entire process made his heart beat like crazy as their faces were now inches apart, but he knew what he wanted to do and made it clear to her as well. "Hinata…I want another baby."

The colour of Hinata's face right now resembled that of a ripened tomato as she struggled to process what he just asked of her. "Ehhhhhh?! Isn't it a l-little too e-early for us to have another…b-b-b-b-baby? We barely just got back together. I don't know if I'm e-emotionally ready yet."

"I think it's only natural. In fact having another child may be the perfect way for us to re-establish our relationship once more. After all, children are a result of their parents' love. What do you say?"

There was a brief moment of hesitation before finally Hinata nodded her head ever so lightly, her body shaking out of anxiety.

"Relax, you're making me nervous now as well. It's not like this is our first time."

"I guess it's just because we haven't done this in so many years. But it's okay. I'm ready now."

Thus the mood was set and Naruto slowly closed the gap between himself and Hinata, sharing their first kiss together after many years. It lasted for only a couple of seconds, but those seconds felt like an eternity. Once they separated from the kiss and there was once again a little distance between them, the two couldn't help but smile at one another.

"I guess it's done. That wasn't so bad now was it? We already have a son. I hope we have a daughter next." Naruto said with a tinge of red on his cheeks.

"If we do, I want to call her Himawari." Hinata replied happily to which Naruto nodded.

While Naruto and Hinata were alone together in the bedroom, Boruto watched from outside the door wide-eyed and in disbelief. This entire day had been nothing short of an emotional roller coaster for him and what he witnessed in front of him was the ultimate shocker. At this moment he remembered a particular conversation he had with his mother not too long ago about how babies were born.

 **Flashback Start: Some time ago**

"Kaa-chan, how are babies born?" Boruto asked his mother casually, not knowing how much of a surprise the question was for his mother.

Hinata was like a deer caught in headlights and stuttered for a bit. She knew that children eventually end up asking their parents this question, but she didn't quite prepare herself for this day quite yet. As such she came up with an impromptu answer on the spot that would be fitting for her son's age.

"You see Boruto, when a husband and a wife really love one another and share a kiss in secret, a baby is born."

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

Boruto remembered that statement from his mother and realised that he just witnessed the conceiving of a sibling due to that kiss. He was so taken aback by the whole event that he lost his balance for a moment and pushed the door to the room open, falling face first on to the floor. This made both Naruto and Hinata jump up from the bed in surprise.

"B-Boruto, what are you doing here?" Hinata asked.

"Mama…why are you with him…alone? And why did you…kiss him?" Boruto asked his mother given that an intimate kiss on the lips to him was like a ritual that only a husband and wife who were in love with one another would perform for a baby to be born.

Hinata was trying to think up an answer in a hurry when Naruto decided to take action himself as he walked over to his son and knelt down on to his knees so as to be face to face with him.

"I know we've been meeting each other for some time now but there is a secret that I've been keeping from you that I want you to know." Naruto said to the young boy as he firmly held on to his shoulder. "Boruto…your mother is my wife and…I am your father."

During the entire day Boruto saw Naruto and Hinata acting as husband and wife as he followed them around the village, but until this very moment that fact was something that he simply had not accepted. But now there were no more doubts.

Finally, the truth had been revealed.

* * *

There you have it - the reunion! But as the name of this chapter suggests, there is something a little odd about this reunion. My challenge to all of you is whether you can figure out what exactly was "odd" about this reunion. Next time I'll give big props to all those who do find it out. The hints are certainly there throughout the chapter, but it may not necessarily be completely obvious. Regardless, this should certainly be an interesting development going forward.

 **Sunflower-lilies:** That is right. It was in fact Minato along with Kushina that saved Hinata while she was running away from Konoha. The story is now starting to come full circle.

 **Hyuuga Hitomichan:** The wording might have been a little weird but Naruto is definitely Minato and Kushina's son. Don't worry, I'm not pulling some kind of weird swerve there.

That is all for now. Let me know your thoughts as always and I will see you all next time.


	21. Seeds of Doubt

**Seeds of Doubt**

Welcome back once again. I can't believe it's been over a month since I last updated, with university starting up again and all. I got a lot of messages from you guys asking for an update and they were all very encouraging. I'm very thankful for all of your vested interested in this story. It makes me enjoy writing it just as much as you do reading it. So without any more wait, let's get back into business.

* * *

" _Boruto…I am your father."_

The utter shock and awe of those words made Boruto open his eyes wide and bolt upright into a sitting position on his bed. The dream was finally over.

Everything that happened thus far between his mother and his so-called father had been nothing but a dream Boruto was having. The last thing he remembered was going to the festival in the next village with his mother before losing consciousness somehow and now he was sitting on in his room. Above all was the craziest dream Boruto had ever seen in his life.

Even though he was awake, the young boy still couldn't get over what he saw in his dream. It shocked him to his very core. However, before he could put much thought behind it, the door to his room burst open and his mother rushed in with a frantic look on her face.

"BORUTO, son you're awake!" She yelled before grasping him in a tight hug. "Are you okay? Do you feel alright? Does it hurt anywhere?"

Boruto was taken aback by his mother's sudden outburst as she was normally very calm and collected, but in this instance she seemed to be at a complete loss. "I-I'm fine. It doesn't hurt or anything."

Hinata finally loosened her grasp on her son so that they could look eye to eye. "Are you sure? You aren't hiding anything from mama are you dear?"

"Of course not. I'm feeling just fine."

Hinata let out a sigh of relief at Boruto's reply and was at last able to calm her anxious heart. She was worried sick ever since she knocked Boruto out cold before her fight with Tobi, but it was something she absolutely had to do in order to keep him from witnessing the cruelty of the shinobi.

"Kaa-chan, what happened? We were going to the festival but I don't remember anything after that. Now I'm here in my bed. I'm confused."

"It was nothing really. You were probably just exhausted yesterday and passed out halfway through our trip. It was pretty hot after all. So I just carried you back home and you've been sleeping ever since then." Although she hated the idea of lying to her son, at this juncture Hinata had no choice but to do so. She wanted to keep the burden of truth from Boruto for as long as possible. He didn't need to know the life threatening dangers she had to face in order to protect him. She just wanted him to be able to keep his child-like innocence without having to face the harsh reality of his origins.

Boruto on the other hand was surprised to hear his mother's explanation but had no reasons to doubt her. Regardless, it was a shame that they couldn't go to the festival since Boruto was really looking forward to it.

"Anyway, you haven't eaten anything since yesterday. So how about the two of us have some breakfast?" Hinata asked in her usual kind tone, to which Boruto nodded.

Both mother and son did their usual routine of sitting at the dining table and eating breakfast together. Although normally this would be a good time for the two to exchange small talk, today Boruto's mind seemed to be adrift elsewhere. Hinata noticed this and decided to question.

"Boruto dear, what's the matter? Are you not feeling well? Or perhaps the food doesn't taste that good? You look like you have something on your mind. You can share it with mama."

Boruto was once again a little taken aback by the sudden enquiry but he couldn't tell her about the dream. It was something even he himself had not come to terms with. "It's nothing really. I was just feeling a little sleepy still. And the food is great as always."

Hinata could tell that Boruto was overexerting himself to keep her from worrying, but she decided to give him some personal space and not hound him any further. If matters persisted in becoming worse then she could always look further into it.

As such the two finished eating their breakfast and since it was the weekend, Boruto left the house to train with his master under the pretence of going to play with his friends as usual.

"Houka." Hinata called out as she watched her son walk towards the village, and in response the ethereal reddish-orange leopard appeared before her from within the woods.

"Do not worry. I'll keep an eye out for him at all times. If anything comes up, I'll let you know." Houka reassured, knowing exactly what her true self was going to say.

"Okay, that's good to know. I'll leave him to you for now. Although physically he is doing perfectly fine from what I've noticed, he seems to be a little lost in thought for some reason. So keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary."

"No problem." Houka replied before disappearing into the woods as quickly as she had appeared and Hinata herself went back into the house to do her usual daily chores.

As Boruto walked towards his master's mansion, for the first time he felt hesitant in doing so. Every weekend what he would look forward to the most was being able to continue his ninja training. Perhaps even more so than the ninja training was the time he got to spend with his teacher, who was always fun to hang around and someone the young boy really looked up to. Yet now the dream that he saw earlier made it difficult for him to face that very man. Even though it was just a dream, it had a profound effect on his young mind and he didn't know why. Boruto just couldn't get over what he saw no matter how much he tried. It was causing him a lot of distress despite just being one of many dreams he had. Yet it was somehow different from all the others at the same time. Little did he understand that the experiences of the time spent with his master and the stories he heard of his father were starting to coalesce into one within his subconscious mind.

Despite being deep in thought for the whole time, his legs almost automatically carried him to the mansion eventually. To Boruto's surprise however, he found that his master was standing outside in the front yard of his mansion.

"YO BORUTO!" He yelled at him from a distance with a large grin across his face. "What took you so long? I thought you were going to skip out on training today."

"I'm a little late than usual. What's the big deal?"

"I don't know, maybe the fact that you arrive early and wake me up unceremoniously from my sleep every other morning!" Naruto replied in a complaining tone, but in reality he cherished every second he got to spend with his son. And although Boruto would often wake him up remorseless in all sorts of mischievous ways, that in itself was also an experience Naruto had come to enjoy. As such not having his son around to wake him up and just the thought of not being able to spend time with him today left Naruto restless ever since he woke up, making him wait in his front yard in anticipation of his son.

Boruto on the other hand did not know how he could communicate with his master. Although he was the same as always, Boruto was constantly reminded of everything he had seen in his dream when he looked at his face. It made it difficult for the young boy to even make eye contact with him.

"Alright then, let's get down to business. We'll continue with your basic sparring techniques from where we left off."

Although Boruto nodded and the two began training, he could barely pay attention to his master's instructions due to his inner turmoil, let alone do any of his fighting manoeuvres. Even though Naruto tried to rectify his mistakes, it became clear to him before long that something wasn't quite right with his student today.

"What's the matter Boruto? You seem to be completely off today. Are you not feeling well?" Naruto asked as he kneeled down in front of his son and touched his forehead. "Hmmm…doesn't seem like you have a fever."

The close proximity between the two caused Boruto to jump back like a frog as the image of this very man claiming to be his father popped up into his mind along with the words – _"Boruto…I am your father."_

"I-I-I-I'm fine." The young boy stuttered his reply unlike his usual self. "What makes you think I'm sick?"

"I was just wondering where your usual hyperactive bundle of energy was. Is everything okay at home? Nothing bad happened between you and your mother, right?"

"N-No, not at all. As I said, everything's fine."

But Naruto could tell that everything was not fine. He could also tell that something was occupying the boy's mind that he didn't want to share. As such he came up with a better solution.

"Say Boruto, do you wanna take a day off training and go on a trip with me? I heard earlier from the villagers that there is a festival of sorts going on at a nearby village. I think it might be fun for the two of us to visit together. I haven't been to a festival in quite some time, so I'm really interested. All expenses are on me, so you can try out whatever you want at the festival. As I said, I think it'll be a lot of fun."

Boruto was surprised by the offer but at the same time he couldn't help but feel excited about it given that he couldn't go with his mother the day before. "What about training though? Is it really okay to skip?"

"It's fine. Even ninjas need to take breaks to rejuvenate themselves both mentally and physically. What do you say? Are you interested?"

The offer was too much for Boruto to pass up and thus he nodded his head in excitement.

"Alright brilliant! From what I understand the village we're headed to is about an hour walk from here, but if we were to take to the trees I think we could get there in 15 minutes." Naruto explained as he picked up Boruto and placed him on top of his shoulders. "Are you ready to go?"

"Of course!"

"In that case – LET'S GOOOOOO!"

Thus Naruto jumped into the trees with his son on his shoulders and the two set off for their destination. With his unmatched speed it didn't take long before the two arrived at the neighbouring village where the festival was being held.

The stories about the grand festival did not disappoint. Almost the entire village had been redecorated for the occasion with colourful lighting and tons of stands of various kinds, as well as a number of rides and children's attractions. Boruto's eyes were practically glimmering given that such occasions were rare for him to come by while living in such a remote village.

"So, what do you want to try first?" Naruto asked as he lowered his son to the ground.

"I…don't know. There's so much." Boruto replied, almost a little overwhelmed by it all. He really didn't where to begin.

"Well as I always say – if you can't decide, try everything imaginable. So let's start walking and we will hit as many stands and attractions as we possibly can."

Unreserved and unrestricted, father and son embarked on a quest to have as much fun as humanely possible. But it didn't even take a minute before Boruto found his first point of interest – a target practice stand with lost of prizes to be won lined up in rows at a distance.

"I wanna try that! I bet I can win a lot of prizes!" Boruto was feeling confident at his ability to hit his mark. He had after all been practicing for the past few weeks now.

"Sounds like it'll be a chance to put all the shuriken practice you've done to the test. Let's give it a try." Naruto replied as they got in a moderately sized line and awaited their turn.

After about 5 minutes of waiting it was now finally their turn and the storeowner, a middle-aged man, greeted them both. "Here to try out your luck at target practice? You get four darts in one go and you win whatever prizes you can knock over."

"We'll take one try each." Naruto requested.

"There's no luck involved here old man. I'm gonna win in all four shots, BELIEVE IT!" Boruto proclaimed with confidence brimming in his voice, so much so that it drew the attention of all the other people waiting in line behind him to see if his skill could live up to his bravado.

"I like that confidence of yours young man. Let's see if you can put it to the test." The storeowner handed both father and son four darts each as Boruto stepped up to try first.

Although the concept sounded simple, winning any prizes was easier said than done given the rather large distance to all the toys and plushies at the back of the stand, which required both precision and power behind the shots to knock over. However that was the case for normal people without any training. Boruto was not a normal child. He was a ninja after all.

"Use the skills you've learned from your shuriken training and this should be a piece of cake." Naruto whispered to his student.

Boruto nodded as he focused on his mark and with one clean throw he knocked over his target with grace. But he didn't stop. One more throw and one more toy fell over. Third and fourth soon followed and the results were the same. In rapid succession Boruto just won four prizes just as he had claimed he would. There was a collective gasp from the audience followed by an applause at the boy's unbelievable marksmanship. Winning even one prize was difficult. Four was unheard off.

Boruto grinned from ear to ear and puffed up his chest in pride. "What I did I say? Aren't I amazing?"

Naruto ruffled his son's hair playfully in response, feeling proud as well. "That was excellent indeed. Now, tell me which other toys you want and I'll get them for you."

Boruto pointed to four more that he did not get the opportunity to hit. In response Naruto placed the four darts in between each of his fingers and before anyone could even process what was going on, like a flash of lightning all four darts hit their targets at once, knocking them over from their resting place.

Everyone's eyes were wide open in shock and even Boruto was impressed. "Wow, you need to teach he how to do that!"

"In due time Boruto. I just thought I'd give you a preview of what is to come."

Boruto agreed and looked over to the storeowner. "Can I have my prizes now?"

The storeowner who was still in shock like the rest of the people in line barely nodded and went over to get the eight toys the two customers had won and handed them to Boruto. As the young Uzumaki revelled in both glory and joy, Naruto went over to the owner to pay the fees for their trials, although the toys they had collectively won amounted to far more than he needed to pay. As such he left the man with what he considered a little extra cash, the little extra covering the cost of everything they won and some more given that the store was built for normal people in mind, not ninjas and he felt a little bad for having almost an unfair advantage.

With the prizes in hand the two started walking once again, only to be stopped within a few steps by another little attraction that caught Boruto's eyes. This time it was a man sitting on the side of the road with a rather large rectangular aquarium filled with small goldfishes. The idea of the game was to use a scoop with a very thin membrane to fish out a goldfish from the aquarium. If one succeeded the goldfish would be theirs to keep.

"I want to try that!" Boruto exclaimed while pointing at the aquarium.

"Very well, let's do it." Naruto's reply was straightforward as he enjoyed watching his son's enthusiasm about it all. He walked up to the man in charge and paid him for Boruto to have a go at trying to get a goldfish of his own. "Now Boruto, this game is all about being patient and remaining in focus. Single out your target and remember the art of concentration I've been teaching you during training. If you can do so, I'm sure you will win."

Boruto heeded his master's words and focused on the goldfish he wanted to catch, singling it out from the rest and honing his concentration on it. After all, concentration was the key to using the ninja arts. He waited and waited until the perfect opportunity to strike presented itself. Thus with one graceful swoop, Boruto picked out the goldfish from the large aquarium and placed it on a smaller one right next to it.

"YAAAAY! I CAUGHT IT!" Boruto jumped in joy and high fived his sensei.

"OHHH! That was amazing!" Naruto clapped in appreciation of the skills displayed. "Now then, it's time to let it back in again."

"Ehhhhh? What do you mean? I just won didn't I? That means I get to keep it."

"Now Boruto, everything must be done in moderation. The other toys we can keep at my place but a goldfish is a pet that would have to be taken care of on a daily basis. Clearly I'm not around every day to do so and neither can you take it home, so the only correct thing to do would be to let it back in. You understand that don't you?"

"I know…but…" Boruto appeared a bit dejected but understood his master's argument.

"Do what is right Boruto." Naruto placed his hand on the young boy's shoulder to give him some support as Boruto poured the goldfish back into the original aquarium. "You did well. But even though you couldn't keep the goldfish, that doesn't mean we can't win more prizes at the festival. So cheer up. There's a lot more fun out there to be had!"

It didn't take long before Boruto was back to his usual energetic self as the duo made their way through the village and tried out all sorts of different games, winning an obscene amount of prizes with their combined efforts. They won so much that the two were now having troubles carrying the spoils of their victories. Despite this they carried on and Naruto took Boruto to every single ride available at the festival – from merry-go-rounds to Ferris wheels and everything in between. He wanted to make sure that one of the few outings he ever had with his son would be one that would be truly memorable.

While roaming around the two finally stumbled upon the special attraction of the festival and their eyes fell upon the grandest prize of them all. Instantly father and son shared a knowing glance and prepared for their final conquest.

"Come one, come all for the ultimate test of your strength!" A man with a microphone announced through the speakers, pointing at two big muscle-bound sumo wrestlers standing centre stage. "Find yourself a partner and for a small fee you can go face to face against the undefeated brothers of destruction in a game of tug of war. The first side to topple the other over wins, and if you are to emerge victorious, the ultimate prize awaits – The Legendary Fox of Yore."

Everyone's eyes fell upon the human-sized orange fox plushie with multiple tails sprouting from its back. It was a beautiful prize that was essentially a thing of dreams for every child in the crowd looking at it right now. But alas very few had the ability to actually win it, leading to its legendary status.

However Boruto knew that he unlike the other and he would be the one to win it. As such he stepped up to the challenge with his master in tow.

"THAT FOX WILL BE MINE!" He announced at the top of his lungs, making everyone do a double take at the boy's bravery, or perhaps foolishness.

"These guys are looking for a challenge young lad. I wouldn't advice a kid to step in. Even though it is just a game of tug of war, we can't be held responsible if you somehow get hurt." The man with the microphone advised in a rather condescending tone, perhaps since he was used to seeing his clients easily dispatch of all comers thus far.

Boruto was not about to have anyone look down upon him, but before he could say anything Naruto stepped up instead. "It's fine. I'm with him and we'll take your two boys on together. And we'll win as well."

At that moment all the younger girls squealed in unison at the sight of a handsome young man stepping up to the child's defence. He had a rather distinct look to himself with his bright blonde hair and cerulean blues eyes. He almost looked like the protagonist of a manga or something.

The attention he was getting from the girls annoyed the attendant. "Very well. If you're persistent about it then have at it. Don't blame us though when your pretty looks get ruined."

"You don't have to worry about my looks." Naruto replied calmly as he handed the man the entrance fee. He then took his place behind Boruto as both sides picked up their ends of the rope.

"If both sides are ready – BEGIN!" The man with the microphone announced through the speakers.

The two brothers on the other end pulled with all their might, thinking that they would win with ease against the child and his guardian. Little did they know however that they were facing perhaps the strongest man in the world.

With just one quick yank with one hand, Naruto made the two brothers fall face first on the ground with ease. And thus to the complete shock of everyone watching, the match was over. It took a moment for everyone to digest the sudden outcome before a large applause broke out and yet another round of squealing from Naruto's new fangirls.

"WE WON!" Boruto jumped in joy and now looked at the man in charge with a smug smile on his face. "What did I tell you? I won! Now give me my prize."

With his clients finally defeated the man had no choice but to award Boruto with his prize, as unbelievable as it seemed to have a child win it in the end. The fox itself was bigger than Boruto, so big in fact that it nearly eclipsed the young boy completely. Yet me happily carried it on its back as if giving it a piggyback ride while dragging its tail through the ground.

"Wow that fox might be just a little bit too big for you." Naruto grinned while giving Boruto a thumbs up.

"I don't care. It's the best prize I won. But more importantly, it's the first prize we won together." Boruto replied with a grin that appeared identical to Naruto's.

At that moment all the girls in the audience realised that the boy was most likely this young man's son and there was a collective sigh of dejection from all of them. They couldn't help but think that this person's wife was a truly lucky woman to have someone so strong and good-looking as him.

"Anyway, I think you've won more than your share of prizes and tried out all the rides. Do you want to grab something to eat?" Naruto suggested.

"Sounds like a plan. I'm starving after all the walking around."

As such the two went around the food stands and bought a whole bunch of items, both sweet and savoury – from yakisoba noodles to taiyaki and of course Naruto's favourite, ramen. They then made their way to the riverbank and sat at a quiet little area under a tree with a nice view over the river to eat in peace.

Naruto grabbed his bowl of ramen while Boruto grabbed a taiyaki, a fish shaped cake with a delicious red bean paste filling.

"LET'S DIG IN!" They both announced in unison before taking a bite from their respective food items.

Naruto savoured the amazing taste of ramen permeating his taste buds. Even though it wasn't as good as Ichikaru's, it was still ramen, so it was great regardless. But before he could dig in properly, he suddenly heard a quiet whimper coming from Boruto. He looked up only to see the horrific sight of red bean paste dripping all over his son's jacket and white T-shirt within.

"BWAAAAAA! What have you done?!"

"Mama's going to get angry if she sees this." Boruto said with teary eyes.

"Oh snap you can say that again. We need to fix this ASAP before your shirt becomes permanently red." Naruto looked around to make sure that there wasn't anyone nearby and that the coast was clear. "Alright stand near the water. I know what to do."

Boruto did as he was asked and with one quick hand motion Naruto made a large sphere of water rise up from the river and engulf Boruto's body apart from his head, spinning around him like a whirlpool and rinsing the red paste off his clothes, before finally dissipating away into the river. He then took in a deep breath and exhaled a stream of warm special wind at Boruto that completely dried him up in seconds, returning his clothes back to as good as new.

"Wow that's amazing! You're almost like a dry cleaning machine. You need to teach me how to do that sometime."

"Well, ninja arts can come in handy on a day to day basis, but it'll take some time before you can use them freely. In any case let's try to not get your clothes dirty in the first place." Naruto replied as the two sat down to eat again. This time he wrapped a napkin around Boruto's shirt as a precautionary measure and kept a watchful eye over him as he ate. He realised that even though Boruto was very intelligent for someone his age, he was still after all a child and as such made childish mistakes. Naruto became so engulfed in watching his son eat that somehow he himself completely forgot about eating his bowl of ramen. It was a joy that he couldn't quite describe in words and it was a though watching his son eat somehow sated his own appetite. He wondered if this was what it meant to be a parent – to put your child's happiness above oneself. Perhaps this was how Hinata felt from the very moment Boruto formed within her, prompting her to ultimately make the decision to leave everything behind to ensure the safety of their son above all else. Without even knowing it, those thoughts brought tears to Naruto's eyes as he realised the family that he had lost in pursuit of the greater good.

Boruto finally caught a glimpse of his master and was shocked to see tears in his eyes. He never thought he would see his master, a battle-hardened shinobi cry. "WHOA! What happened? Why are you crying?"

Naruto quickly wiped off the tears in his eyes when made him aware of their presence and tried to think up something in his defence. "I-It's nothing. I think…something got in my eyes."

"I think that's a bad excuse. Mama uses it whenever she's sad and crying as well." Boruto replied sympathetically.

"I guess I was caught huh? It's just that I remembered something important just now. You see, I lost both of my parents when I was very young and about the same age as you. For the longest time I had no actual family, but eventually once I married my wife that void was filled and we were going to have a child together. That would be my new family. But it never came to be since my wife left me before my son was even born. I didn't even get to meet him. That is why our experience today reminded me of him somehow and perhaps, if we were all still together right now I would be playing with him like this all the time. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get all mellow on you like this. Forget what I just said."

Naruto's story resonated with Boruto as he himself had been feeling conflicted ever since having the dream where his master claimed to be his father. Boruto didn't know how to quite react to such a thought given that he never got to meet his real father. Yet his master himself was having thoughts similar to those himself, being reminded of the son he never got to meet through him. It was almost like a mutual feeling. Perhaps, Boruto thought, that it was okay to have such a dream as he did. Perhaps such a dream, if it were a reality, would not be so bad. And maybe, just maybe, somewhere deep inside he wished that his master was actually his father. Maybe that was the reason why he felt so conflicted about the dream to begin with.

That train of thought surprised Boruto, but he finally came to terms with how he truly felt. He had heard stories of his father's legacy from his grandparents, but that man he heard of seemed so distant and untouchable – someone so out of his reach. Yet the man in front of him right now embodied everything that he had always hoped his father would be if he were here – someone who was fun to be around, yet serious and reliable when necessary. At first Boruto was indebted to his master ever since he saved his mother, but as time passed and the two spent time together over the previous months, the young boy realised that he cherished every second they spent together, eagerly awaiting his master's return every weekend and their time training together. He was just fun to be around, but above all Boruto felt a special connection to him that he just couldn't describe with words. Perhaps that connection, Boruto wondered in his young mind for the very first time, was one that a son felt with his father.

Boruto stood up and this time he was the one to ruffle Naruto's blonde hair, something that his teacher would often do playfully to him. "You shouldn't feel sad. I'm sure that one day you'll find your family again, and when you do I think…no…I KNOW that you will make an amazing father."

Those words, they were too much for Naruto. He could no longer control himself as he grasped his son in a tight a hug and wept silently, holding in the unimaginable urge to just tell him the truth – that Boruto was in fact the lost son that he never got to meet. Yet he supressed that pain, promising himself and his son that one day soon he would finally reunite his family once more. In that mission, he was determined unlike ever before.

Although Boruto would have normally considered someone other than his mother hugging him repulsive, for whatever reason he was happy to be embraced by his master and to be able to bring him some comfort. As such he hugged him back and in doing so finally came to terms with his own wish that this person could have been his father.

After both father and son shared an emotional moment together, they both separated and given their similar personalities, soon returned back to their cheerful selves, not being hung up on anything sombre for too long. After finishing their meals the two packed up all of the prizes they had won at the festival and got ready to leave. On their way out Naruto bought Boruto an ice cream, which he was enjoying while sitting on his master's shoulders.

"Boruto, you're dripping ice cream all over my hair." Naruto informed his son with a sigh.

"Oh snap, I'm sorry. Let me wipe it off."

The act of wiping the ice cream only managed to smear it all over Naruto's head and although he would normally be annoyed by such an act, Naruto didn't mind. Once again, it was just another one of his son's silly antics.

As the two were walking out of the village, suddenly there was a call from within the crowds behind from a voice that Naruto recognised. It was a shinobi from Konoha, someone who he assigned a mission nearby, who was probably visiting the festival on his way back with his team.

"Hokage-sama? Hokage-sama is that you?" That voice asked.

" _Oh darn it! I can't be caught here! At least they aren't sure it's me! Now's my chance to escape!"_ Naruto thought within his mind as he quickly blended into the crowd and exited the village with his ninja stealth. Once they were out he jumped from tree to tree and headed back to his mansion.

"That person in the village, wasn't he calling to you? I think you said when we first met that you were the Fourth Hokage, right?" Boruto remembered the memory of the fateful day during which he met his teacher. However, it was also that memory that made him realise something odd about the term "Hokage" given his meeting with his grandmother. Back then he didn't really pay much heed to it, but in his grandmother's story about his father, she mentioned emphatically that his father due to his heroic actions ultimately became the Hokage, the leader of his village, someone of very important status and power. That seemed odd to Boruto now since his master also claimed to be the Hokage. Maybe since he was the "Fourth" Hokage, his father was one of the previous ones. He was curious.

"Yeah, I think that person was calling out to me since I am the Fourth Hokage. He works under me, but I just didn't want to get caught up in work and stuff since it's my time off right now. You know how it is with wanting some peace from work." Naruto explained.

"You know, since you say that you're the Fourth Hokage, there must have been more before you right? I'm now curious about who they were."

"There were indeed three others, but even if I told you their names you wouldn't know them."

"I don't care. I just want to know."

Thinking that it was just childish curiosity, Naruto decided to name the previous Hokage for Boruto. "The first Hokage was a man named Madara Uchiha, the second Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third was the Toad Sage Jiraiya, and the fourth is yours truly, Menma Arashi. Those three were the previous leaders of my village, Konoha, and I am its current leader."

Now something seemed truly off to Boruto. None of those names matched up with that of "Naruto Uzumaki", the name of his father. That would mean that either his master was lying, which couldn't be the case since the ninja from his village earlier referred to him as Hokage, or that his grandmother was lying, which also seemed odd since some of the other stuff she said matched up with what his mother told him about his father so far. In his childlike mind, he didn't think there was any reason for his grandmother to lie to him about this. As such Boruto was a little confused.

However it was at that moment that one final thought came to his mind that he had not considered before, one that would reconcile both sides of the argument. What if the person that his grandmother talked of and the "Fourth Hokage" were one and the same?

That would mean that the person that he was currently with was his…?

That thought resonated through the boy's mind for what felt like an eternity.

Boruto's eyes widened as he looked down at his master, his blonde hair and blue eyes all of a sudden ringing true with his own. Could it be?!

For the first time there were seeds of doubts in Boruto's mind.

* * *

Yes, I know, I know. I'm a terrible person for making last chapter into a dream, but I definitely did not do it just to troll. It is all part of the plot, which hopefully you could see with this chapter. Boruto finding out about Naruto being his father is just as important as Hinata coming face to face with Naruto once again. With this chapter we are now well on our way to those two very important events taking place. As such I'll leave you all with a simple question this time, which do you think will happen first: Boruto finding out that Naruto is his father? Or Hinata coming face to face Naruto? Either way it should be interesting.

From last time **gio08, rodina2000, Guest 8, Albert da Snake, abacaxi** all very cleverly realised that last chapter was just a dream. That was quite amazing indeed.

 **Gold Testament, AndyM9594, Zilcho, Switchlolly007, Shlavecod, jankitty13, naruhinakiralacus, Xd, petran, naru nana 7 sama, Tomo, TheReal KewlKat, Erosdeat:** Although you guys didn't directly mention a dream, all of you either found the chapter weird or pointed out the many inconsistencies within it that did not quite make sense, which by the way I put in on purpose to allude to the fact it was all a dream. My particular favourite which a few of you pointed out was the fact that Himawari was magically conceived through just a kiss. As **Erosdeath** said, if that were actually possible the two of them would have a thousand kids by now lol. Okay maybe not a 1000, but you get the point. There were many more things that did not make sense such as Naruto and Hinata not noticing Boruto tailing them for the whole day despite being highly experienced shinobi and Hinata at some point having her Byakugan active. I did say in the past that Naruto and Hinata's reunion would not be so simple, and I'm glad to see that the majority of you want there to be a much bigger payoff behind their eventual meeting. That to me is great news going forward since that is what I intend to have.

 **TheReal KewlKat:** Okay wow, that is some meta level observation right there. Indeed you're right, if Hinata were to meet Naruto in real life, Houka's memories of Naruto training Boruto would be unsealed as you pointed out, leading to even bigger of a reaction from her. Yet it didn't happen last chapter. The whole idea behind the Houka sealed memories is for Hinata to eventually realise that Naruto has been training Boruto behind her back when they finally meet, and you can only imagine how that will all play out.

 **petran:** I did chuckle reading your review, but as I said before neither Naruto nor Hinata will ever cheat on each other, and that includes Hanabi. Her feelings are just unrequited love and Naruto thinks of her as nothing more than a younger sister. Think of it this way - Naruto is basically Hina-sexual and Hinata is Naru-sexual lol, as in they don't feel any kind of attraction towards anyone but each other. Okay maybe I overexaggerated a little bit for comic relief, but you get the point. They only love each other and would never cheat even if they are apart. So no, you don't get any virtual cookies unfortunately. BUT LONG LIVE THE HYUGA CONSPIRACY INDEED! In that you are right. Naruto and Hinata's marriage was all according to KEIKAKU! That Hiashi is a mad eugenist! And you know what...he might even have comrades in his grand plans.

Anyway, that is all for today. Let me know your thoughts on the chapter. Thank you all once again for your support and I'm now hoping to get back into updating frequently once again. At least as frequently as I can. See you all in the next episode of Dragon Ba...wait wrong story...Shattered Ties. Be well!


	22. An Undying Love

**An Undying Love**

* * *

It didn't take that long before Naruto and Boruto arrived back at the mansion. They worked together to stock all the prizes they won into one room that Naruto decided to dedicate to all his son's belongings. Boruto was however still lost in thought in regards to the minute possibility circling in the back of his mind right now that his master could in fact be his father in disguise. Of course he had no way to confirm this thought and it could all just be a complete misunderstanding, but Boruto just couldn't shake off the feeling. As such he wanted to rush home to further investigate the matter.

"I'll be going now. I guess I'll see you next weekend." Boruto said as the two now stood in the front yard, ready to go their separate ways.

"Actually Boruto I don't think I'll make it next weekend. I have some important work to tend to."

Instantly a cloud of disappointment overtook the young boy's face. "Eh? Really? You can't show up?"

"I've been coming here every weekend for quite some time now, so I don't think it's that big of a deal if I miss one week right?"

"Well yeah I guess that's true but…it's just that next Sunday is my birthday and I thought it'd be cool to have you around."

Naruto's eyes widened from the information that he just received. He felt terrible inside for being a father and not even knowing his son's birthday. Of course this wasn't really his fault since he didn't get the opportunity to be there when his son was born, but despite knowing that fact he still couldn't shake off the feeling of self-loathing from within. However, what was past was past. He needed to take care of the present. As such Naruto bit his tongue while lost deep in thought.

"It's okay really. It's not a big deal if you can't show up. I mean you've been training me for so long even thought you're the leader of your village and everything. I'm sure you've got important work to do-"

Before Boruto could finish, Naruto placed both of his hands on his shoulders and looked him dead in the eye. "NO, I will definitely be here next weekend! So let's celebrate your birthday and do something fun together, okay? I'll think up something over the week and I'll see you then."

"Okay, sure. I'm looking forward to it." Boruto replied happily before waving goodbye to his sensei and leaving for home.

Naruto gave out a long sigh of both relief and pressure at the same time. He would now definitely have to re-think the week in front of him given the plans he had in mind for it. Even though he may not have had the opportunity to be there on the actual day of his son's birth, he would not miss another one of his birthdays ever again. Thus he left for Konoha determined to get his plans in motion and return in time for his son's birthday.

Boruto returned home in time for dinner and as usual he and his mother ate together while carrying out idle chitchat. But today Boruto's mind was a little absent during the conversations and his mother picked up on that fact.

"What's the matter Boruto? You seem a bit lost in thought ever since this morning? Is anything bothering you? You can tell mama you know." Hinata reconciled with her son as she finished watching up the dishes.

"Actually, I had a dream this morning about…dad…and I've been thinking about it ever since."

Instantly Hinata was frozen in spot and stopped doing whatever it was she was doing at the time, turning her head towards her son. "Eh? Is that so? What did you dream about him?"

"I can't remember all the details but I saw the two of you together, and it made me wonder what kind of person he was, whether he was actually a good person and how you felt about him." Boruto decided to be as forward and truthful with his mother as possible since that was the only way he could think of to get the answers he wanted. He absolutely needed to know more about his father directly from his mother. Any information she gave would be vital.

Hinata was left speechless by how bold her son was about matters regarding his father. It didn't take her much to realise at this point that the topic of his father was really starting to encompass Boruto's mind significantly to the point that he was now dreaming about him. She knew that the time to dance around the matter was now over. She needed to give him the answers that he sought, or at least as much as she could. She needed to tell him the truth.

Thus Hinata put away the dishes she finished washing and walked up to her son, wrapping an arm gently around him. "Boruto, would you like to sleep together with Mama tonight? I'd like to tell you some stories…stories about your father…and I."

Boruto's eyes lit up in joy and he gave a resounding "YES!" before running off to his room to get changed into his pajamas. Hinata smiled at her son's enthusiasm, but at the same time she braced herself emotionally for what was to come. This was going to be painful, but it would be for her son.

 _ **A little while later…**_

Hinata was sitting with her back against some pillows that were stacked up against the bed rest and Boruto was sitting in between her legs and leaning back on her with her hands wrapped around his body. Often times both mother and son would relax like this at night as Hinata would tell stories to Boruto until he fell asleep. Tonight however was a little different. There was a feeling of tension between them as opposed to them being completely relaxed due to the topic at hand. But despite this Hinata decided to start and lighten up the mood.

"Boruto, I did tell you your father's name last time if you remember."

"Of course I remember. It was Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki." Boruto cut in with a great amount of enthusiasm.

"Indeed, that was his name. I'm glad that you remember it. But I suppose I should tell you a little bit more about him as a person and the relationship we shared. You see Boruto, your father and I lived in a village named Konoha, far away from here. Within that village our families were actually pretty well off. Unlike how we are now, I actually come from a pretty established family that had a lot of power within Konoha, and the same could be said about your father, given that your grandfather was nominated to become the leader of that village. More importantly however, both my father and your father's father, well I suppose your paternal grandfather, they were the best of friends. Because of that your father and I got to know each other from a very young age. Unfortunately however, due to some terrible circumstances your father lost your grandmother right after he was born, and your grandfather as well when he was about your age. He became an orphan when he was only 7 years of age, left alone in the world as a little child, a truly heart-breaking fate."

As Boruto heard an account of his father, he realised that even though often times he would consider himself unfortunate for not having his whole family with him like other children, his own father had it much worse, losing both parents at such a young age. It made him feel grateful for having such a caring mother.

"But all hope was not lost. Since both of your grandfathers were such great friends, my father decided to look after his friend's son. And it was during this time that it all began between Naruto-kun and I."

"Naruto-kun?" Boruto asked, finding it odd that his mother referred to his father with an honorific that would normally be used to refer to someone young. "Is that what you called him?"

Hinata however giggled in response. "I suppose from an outside perspective in might seem a bit odd for a wife to refer to her husband like that, but you have to understand that the two of us have known each other since we were children. Me calling him Naruto-kun became like a term of endearment that never changed. You see, your father and I were childhood friends since we went to school together. But that was only just the beginning. After we left school I guess you could say that we also started working together in my previous profession, since we were part of the same team. During that time we fell in love with one another and before long we were married."

The story so far was one Boruto had heard before, but what struck him in particular was the fact that his father had been orphaned at a very young age, a history that his teacher also seemed to share. It was a bit suspicious but Boruto listened on regardless.

"Well let me share with you some memories between myself and your father…some of my most precious memories." Hinata said to her son while reminiscing of the fondest of times in her life.

 **Flashback: 9 Years Ago**

It was Hinata's 18th birthday. She just finally got done dressing up for the occasion in a formal Kimono as her father had asked her to. There was going to be a celebration later on at night for her coming of age, but right now there was someone who was here at the compound that her father wanted her to meet. For Hinata her 18th birthday was a far more important event than anyone else given her status as the clan leader's eldest child. It heralded the coming of a new future as she was finally thought to be ready to accept proper responsibility of her formal duties towards the clan in terms of training the younger clan members and management of clan resources. There was however one other equally important factor – the one regarding marriage. Although this was normally not a consideration for any other person to make, but being the daughter of the clan leader meant that marriage was a matter of unparalleled importance for her given that it would determine the future generations to come that would take the helm of the clan. For that reason Hinata had been hearing rumours about potential suitors that were scouting her availability and that the clan had decided on someone already. The thought was that this meeting she was asked to go to was to meet that suitor, hence the formal dress up.

Although she was sure that her father knew what she wanted when it came to love and marriage, she still couldn't help but cringe at the idea of being in a romantic relationship with anyone but Naruto. The idea of marrying anyone but him was something she never even wanted to consider. Even though she had a pretty decent relationship with her clan – the young ones loved her due to her caring nature and the elders acknowledged her strength and talent as a Hyuga, she couldn't help but dread the idea that they may have somehow convinced her father otherwise. All sorts of bad thoughts were clouding her mind as she made her way to her father's office. She gulped hard and knocked a few times on the door, preparing for the worst, which would be to reject anyone and anything that was not Naruto.

Her father's voice beckoned her to enter and as she slid the door open, to her shock as well as relief she found Naruto sitting across her father at the kotatsu. He was also dressed up very formally in what looked like a very expensive yukata and appeared to be well groomed and perfumed for the occasion. Hinata's mind almost drifted away by how dreamy and handsome he looked, only to be brought back to reality by his voice.

"Hinata…you're looking really beautiful in that kimono." He complimented, apparently having been checking her out as well, which made Hinata blush.

As she came to her senses, Hinata realised the oddity of the situation. For as long as she had known him, Naruto always hated wearing formal clothing like this, complaining about them at every chance he got. Except today he seemed to be completely fine with it and almost seemed happy to be dressed up for the occasion.

"U-Um…thank you Naruto-kun. You look great too. But why are you dressed up so formally? You know I wouldn't mind if you showed up in your normal clothes for my birthday."

"Well yeah I know you wouldn't mind and normally I'm not too fond of wearing traditional clothing, but I suppose some occasions really do call for them." Naruto explained as he turned towards Hiashi once more. "I wasn't going to show up to my marriage meeting in street clothes. Not even I'm that stupid."

Hiashi lightly nodded his head. "I'm glad you had at least that much common sense, or else I would have personally dragged you back home, stripped you bare and put you into some proper clothes myself."

Naruto cringed at Hiashi's words. "I don't think I ever even want to think about you stripping me…EVER! Ugggh!"

Hiashi coughed audibly in order to restore order once more. "Anyway, going back to what we were discussing earlier. So the agreement is two children. One of them will succeed the Hyuga while the other can follow in their father's footsteps and save the world or something of the sort. Regardless, two is the absolute minimum. More is preferable however, but I suppose that will depend upon the two of you."

"I don't mind having a big family." Naruto replied with a little bit of unusual shyness to his tone given the matter being discussed.

Hiashi now turned towards his daughter and asked her in a matter of fact kind of way, "You can manage at least two, right Hinata?"

Thus far Hinata had been stunned silent by the topic of the conversation between Naruto and her father, but the question finally snapped her back into her senses. "W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-What are you two talking about?"

"What are we talking about? You should know that by now my dear daughter." Hiashi seemed somewhat disappointed by the question. "I'm negotiating the terms of your marriage with Naruto and securing the future of the Hyuga clan as well."

Hinata's mouth opened and closed like a fish, as she was lost for words before finally being able to conjure up some words. "D-D-Did you know about this Naruto-kun? Why didn't you tell me about this meeting beforehand?"

"Don't you remember what you said to me a few months ago during my birthday? It was something like – Since this is your 18th birthday, I want to give you something special as a gift Naruto-kun. I promise to remain by your side forever." Naruto reminded her while trying his best to imitate her in a girly voice. "Do you remember now?"

Hinata covered her face with both hands in embarrassment. "I d-d-did say something like that."

"Well then how exactly did you plan on being by my side forever? That's practically a marriage proposal. So I decided to talk to the old man over here and set up our marriage as soon as you turned 18 as well. I thought that much would be obvious."

"S-Still, you should have told me about it so that I could be mentally prepared. I wanted to hear it from you."

"Is that so?" Naruto asked as he made his way over to Hinata and now peered directly into her soul. "I love you Hinata. Will you marry me?"

He laid it out as simply and as straightforwardly as he could, causing Hinata's face to look like it was going to explode any second into a burst of fireworks.

"D-Do you even have to ask?! You already know my a-answer! Of course I'll marry you!"

"You're the one who said you wanted me to ask just a second ago. What exactly do you want me to do?"

"You should have asked me and not ask me at the same time." Hinata answered in vain, not knowing full well what she was even saying at this point. Her head my spinning from feeling a plethora of emotions all at once.

"Okay, now you're just asking me to do the impossible. I just can't win."

As the two realised the silliness of their conversation, which for all intents and purposes should have been very serious given that it was regarding marriage and the rest of their lives, they both started laughing wholeheartedly.

" _Even now they argue about the most frivolous of matters before laughing it all off moments later. I guess some things never change, and I hope they never do."_ Hiashi thought to himself as all the memories of watching Naruto and Hinata growing up in front of his eyes rushed through his mind and he could almost feel his eyes moisten up ever so lightly. " _I wish you were here to see this day Minato, my dear old friend. Our children have truly grown up…grown up enough to start their own family. I'm glad to be able to witness this day and facilitate the budding of this new relationship, just as we had hoped for before they were even born. Our wish came true."_

Before the Hyuga leader could go any further back down memory lane, Naruto was once again on his case.

"Alright old man, you heard her. She said yes, so now I'm challenging you to a fight. 1v1 me bro!" Naruto announced his challenge at the top of his voice.

"What are you talking about?" Hiashi gave him a confused look in response.

"Well given that your daughter has agreed to marry me, isn't this the point where you challenge me to a one and one fight to see if I'm worthy of taking her hand?"

"Where in God's green Earth did you get such an idea?"

"Wait you aren't gonna fight me? You're just gonna let me marry your daughter without putting up any kind of resistance whatsoever?" Naruto appeared a little disappointed. "And here I was getting a little excited. Hanabi-chan gave me this romance novel and told me to read it carefully because I'd probably have to replicate much of the events within the novel if I wanted to marry Hinata. I remember quite distinctly that the main character in that story had to fight the father of the girl he loved in a duel to the death. He ultimately won and in his last dying breaths, the girl's father acknowledged him as being worthy of his daughter and entrusted her to him. It was actually quite touching."

Both Hiashi and Hinata did not know what to say. Somewhere in the Hyuga compound Hanabi was probably giggling away like a little girl, they both thought. She had once again managed to successfully troll yet another victim.

"What do you take us Hyuga for, barbarians?! I will do no such thing!" Hiashi asked in an annoyed tone, a vein visibly bulging up in his temple. He made an inward note to have a stern talk with his younger daughter later.

However it didn't take long for him to once again assume a gentle expression, as he wanted to relay a very important message to the two people standing before him. "Naruto, Hinata – I've seen you both grow up in front of me and I firmly believe that the two of you belong with each other. As such you have my support, and my blessings as well."

Naruto and Hinata both nodded wholeheartedly with heartfelt smiles and looked at each other.

"I guess it's set. I hope you'll accept me as your husband Hinata."

"Of course, and I hope you'll accept me as your wife Naruto-kun."

Thus the marriage between Naruto and Hinata became a reality to both of their joy and elation.

 _ **Some time later…**_

It was the night of their marriage. The ceremony was complete and Naruto and Hinata were now officially husband and wife. After the eventful day that they would never forget, the two were now in their bedroom, spending a night together for the very first time. Hinata was sitting on the bed with her legs folded and Naruto was lying on the bed with his head on her lap as she gently stroked his long blonde hair with her fingers. The sensation felt heavenly to Naruto.

"Hinata…"

"Hmmm…what is it Naruto-kun?"

"I just wanted to say thank you for being my wife. I'm just so happy I can't describe it with words."

"I should be the one to thank you Naruto-kun for taking me as your wife. Before I could only ever dream of this day, but now I'm finally starting to realise that this is all a reality. I may still feel like I'm dreaming. Today is the best day of my life."

"I feel the same way Hinata. For someone like me who lost his family so early on in his life, having a new family with you means everything to me. I promise that I'll always make you happy." Naruto said to his new wife as he caressed her face with his right hand. At that moment he made a heartfelt request to her. "I don't have anyone to call family other than you. You're the only one I have in this world. So please, don't ever leave me."

Those words, they were simple yet at the same time very powerful. Hinata could feel the emotion behind those words. Thus her reply was simple as well, but one that demonstrated her utmost intent.

"Of course, that goes without saying."

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

As Boruto listened to the story of their parents' union, he could feel the emotion in his mother's voice. Even though he expected his mother to speak ill of his father for the decisions he made, she only spoke positively of him and about how caring he was. He understood just how much his parents must have cared for one another. All of this came as quite a shock to the young boy and it only made him question even further as to why his parents were separated in the first place.

"You see Boruto, Naruto-kun and I loved each other from the bottom of our hearts. He was my childhood friend and my best friend at the same time. He was my classmate and also my squadmate at work. But above all, he was my husband and the father of my child – you Boruto. He meant the world to me, just as you do too. Contrary to what you may have believed, your father was not a bed person. I don't want you to ever feel that way. We didn't separate because he treated me badly or anything like that. It was quite the opposite. Your father was a really good person. Perhaps a bit too good. He wanted to protect everyone and make everything right. But unfortunately this world isn't as nice as your father, and because of that sacrifices needed to be made. I'm sure none of this makes sense to you, but I just want you to know that despite everything that happened between us, these facts will never change – I loved your father, and he loved me as well. And you Boruto are the manifestation of our love."

"Why? If you love him so much, then why did you leave him?" Boruto asked as he turned to look directly at his mother. But before he could do so, his mother held his head in place and stopped him from turning.

"I'm sorry Boruto, but that part of the story will have to wait for another time. I think…this is all I can manage for now. I hope you'll understand I would really like…if you didn't look at…mama right now." She requested, her voice starting to break in the process.

But Boruto had already caught a glimpse of his mother and as such forced himself around to look at her face and face. Instantly a deep sense of regret came over the young boy as he witnessed his mother's current state, one that he had never seen before.

Hinata was crying silently and her usual pure white eyes were bloodshot red as tears rolled down her cheeks uncontrollably. It seemed as though she had lost all control of her emotions.

"Kaa-chan, are you okay?" Boruto asked with great concern in his voice.

"I'm sorry…I need to be strong…for you…Boruto…but…just remembered…so many memories of him…Naruto-kun and me…loved him…all my heart…spent all that time together…but now he's no longer here…miss him…so much…wish this never happened…wish we could have been…happy family…I only wish…we could be together…always." Hinata grabbed her son in a tight embrace and opened up her heart to him – the person for whom she sacrificed it all, telling him what she had bottled up for all these years. But she was crying so much that her words were all broken up and came out as gibberish. Despite this she never let go of her son and bawled her eyes out for what seemed like an eternity but in reality was just a couple of minutes. Boruto remained silent for that time, not knowing what he could say to her, but allowing his mother to cry while hugging her back, remembering how she would always hug him whenever he got hurt while playing. In those instances just feeling the warmth and presence of his mother was enough to bring him solace and make the pain go away. As such he did the same for her.

After some time passed, Hinata slowly let go off her son and wiped her face in order to compose herself once more.

"Are you feeling better now, Kaa-chan?" Boruto asked once more.

Hinata nodded to him with a smile. "Thank you for supporting your mother dear. It is because you are here that I can always keep moving forward. But you wanted to know the truth didn't you Boruto? So I wanted you to know the truth. This is how much your father meant to me. This is how much I truly loved him."

There was a conviction in his mother's voice as she declared her love to his father that he had never quite felt before. That feeling made Boruto want to meet his father, now more than ever before. His father was the one final person he needed to meet to get to the bottom of all this. He resolved to somehow, someway find his father one day even if his mother did not take him.

However, little did Boruto know that in a week's time during his very birthday, he would finally find out the identity of his father.

* * *

Well, there you have it. I wanted to end today by putting a proper way point to when Boruto will finally find out about Naruto being his father. It'll be pretty big. As **rodina2000** , **Erosdeath** , **NarHina** , **Guest 8** , **Trainer1232** , **naruhinakiralacus** , **Shlavecod** wanted, Boruto will in fact find out that Naruto is his father before Naruto and Hinata meet.

I'd love to know how you guys want Boruto learning of his father and everything else so far to affect Naruto and Hinata's encounter. Will Boruto side with his father? Or will he side with his mother? Or maybe...something else entirely? Questions! Questions!

Other than that I really wanted to delve deeper into Hinata opening up to Boruto in this chapter as we start to wrap up this whole storyline. Things are going to start coming full circle. Next chapter will be a bit of a change in pace though and it'll in fact be from the perspective of a different character - Sarada in fact. Hopefully you'll find it interesting when it comes around.

Thanks once again for reading and I hope to see you all next time. Until then, take care and be well :)


	23. The Traitor of Konoha Part 1

**The Traitor of Konoha Part 1**

* * *

Konoha, Monday afternoon…

Sarada Uchiha was browsing through one of the many shelves in the Academy's library. There was going to be no classes this afternoon but the teacher set them an assignment to watch a video of shinobi in combat and write a short report on the main points they learned from observing. To that end a section of the library hosted tons of video footage of various friendly bouts throughout the years and preserved them for the academy students to learn from.

Sarada appeared bored as none of the subtitles in the videos interested her. They were all videos of random genin and chunin involved in boring sparring sessions using very limited skillsets for the sole purpose of being easily graspable by younger students with little to no combat knowledge. To Sarada who was a member of the Uchiha clan, seeing skilful bouts between members of her clan was commonplace. As such none of these videos piqued her interest in the least. As she kept browsing around she accidently found an old looking disc case stacked at the very back of one of the shelves, behind other cases. Something told her that this may have been misplaced or they didn't want it to be readily available to students. So she pulled it out just out of curiosity and spun it around to glean whatever information she could from the plain white cover. The cover only had a handwritten title and part of it was scratched out.

Chunin Exam Finals: Sasuke Uchiha & Sakura Haruno VS Naruto Uzumaki & *scratched out name*

Sarada's eyes widened in surprise. She had struck the goldmine somehow. This was a video of her parents taking part in the chunin exams together. Now she was truly invested, especially given that she had a rather distant relationship with her father. He would never tell her any stories of his past like any other normal parent would or spend much time with her for that matter. On top of this she felt that her parents seemed to have what could only be described as a dysfunctional relationship. It hardly seemed normal and made her question whether her parents even loved one another. Regardless, this was a chance for her to find out a little bit more about them and how they performed as a team. Not to mention the fact that they were going up against the Hokage himself, the one considered to be the strongest in Konoha. Sarada wondered if the person whose name was scribbled out was in fact the teammate the Hokage spoke so dearly of in his visit to the academy a while back. This was all very exciting to the young Uchiha as she borrowed a laptop from the library, found a quiet corner, plugged her earphones in and started watching.

 **Flashback: 12 Years Ago**

The stadium was loud and bustling with people. Not a single seat was empty and people were even standing behind the back rows just to be able to watch this event. It was the finals of this year's chunin exams that would determine the team who got a guaranteed promotion from genin to chunin status. The tournament had been spectacular with some incredible competition, thus drawing a crowd larger than ever before for the event. It also helped that the two best teams that made their way to the finals had pretty high profile participants.

"Welcome all to the final match of the chunin exams! I'm sure the contestants require no introduction as you've seen them blast their way through to the very top of the tournament, but here they are regardless." The commentator, Ebisu announced through the loudspeakers, resulting in a thunderous round of cheers across the stadium. "On one corner we have the squad of Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga, TEAM ZERO!"

Naruto and Hinata took a step forward to a massive ovation from the audience.

"Through their spectacular skills and unparalleled teamwork they have easily become one of the top favourites to win this tournament. But perhaps that was to be expected given their backgrounds." Ebisu explained. "However, their opponents are just as amazing. On the other side we have the squad of Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, TEAM SEVEN!"

This time Sasuke and Sakura stepped forward, once again to a great applause.

"Team seven has had a dominating showing throughout the whole tournament unlike any we've ever seen before. Sasuke Uchiha has singlehandedly defeated every single team by himself throughout the tournament to advance his own team to the finals. Such a feat is unheard of. That young man's abilities have been unmatched thus far. We've yet to see Sakura Haruno participate in a battle in this tournament, but if I had to bet I would say that this match will be the one. Team Zero is most certainly no slouch and this bout has all the makings to be one for the ages."

The crowd was already at the edge of their seats even before the match had begun. Not only were the two teams well established in their accomplishments, the fact that Sasuke and Hinata were in it made it even more high profile. They were the children of the Uchiha and Hyuga clan leaders, the future of their clans. As such this was going to be the closest thing to a clan war between the two strongest clans in Konoha, albeit in a formal setting and without any bad blood between them. Seldom did people get the opportunity to see such a high profile match, where one clan could assert their dominance over another without directly going at each other's throats.

Almost the entire Hyuga clan was present at the stadium, including Hiashi and Hanabi, and also all the clan elders who had come to witness Hinata's progress first hand, the representative of their clan in front of the whole village. Hinata could feel their piercing eyes as all of them watched on with their Byakugan active, ready to observe her every single move. She would normally be a bit nervous with so many eyes upon her, but with Naruto by her side she knew that everything would be fine. She was confident and it showed.

On the other side the Uchiha were present in their entirety as well. Fugaku looked down upon his son with keen, watchful eyes. Sitting next to him was his wife Mikoto who was grinning ear to ear and next to her was their second oldest son, Shisui.

"It only feels like yesterday when Sasuke was just a little boy, and now he's participating in the chunin exams. Time sure does fly doesn't it?" Mikoto asked her two immediate family members, feeling proud of her son.

"Yeah, seeing him in the chunin exams somehow makes me feel old, but it's great at the same time. I'm sure he'll make the Uchiha proud." Shusui agreed with his mother while feeling happy inside, being the most cheerful of the three Uchiha brothers. Itachi was a bit distant by nature while Sasuke a bit too serious. Shisui was the closest to his mother for that reason.

Elsewhere in a special observation tower above the arena was the Hokage, who was also in attendance to watch the finals. Jiraiya was just happy to be able to get out of his office and all the paper works, but he was genuinely interested in watching Naruto and Hinata's progress, seeing that they were his own students' children. Accompanying him was his old teammate and one of the village elders, Tsunade as well as Itachi and Kakashi, the teachers of the participants in question.

"I guess this is where we finally get to see how well you've trained your students. Your next pay checks may or may not take a hit depending on their performance." Jiraiya joked with the two jounin.

"Please do not jest about such serious financial matters. I may just have to give up being a shinobi at this rate and take up writing as a full time profession." Kakashi replied, being partially serious.

"You know, that may not be such a bad idea. I could use the next issue of your-"

"Don't even think about it Jiraiya!" Tsunade glared at her old teammate. "We need Kakashi on the active roster, not writing those stupid books of his."

"I-I was just kidding. Seriously Tsunade, you need to take a chill pill sometimes." Jiraiya, having his share of fun with Kakashi now turned to the other jounin. "What about you Itachi, who are you rooting for to win? I bet this will be a difficult choice."

"Hmmm…I don't think it is a tough choice. I'm already well aware which team is going to emerge victorious."

"Oh…is that so? You seem pretty confident. Care to enlighten the rest of us?"

"I shall leave the results to unfold in due time. I wouldn't want to ruin the fun."

Jiraiya grimaced in response. "You're never any fun Itachi."

Back on the battlefield the atmosphere was heating up by the second and the two teams were now having a stare down, a referee taking point in between them.

"It is nearly time for the battle to start." Ebisu on commentary announced to the audience. "Before we begin I'd like to inform everyone of the rules of this match. As with all the matches in the top 8, this will be an elimination style team battle. Only one member of each team will be allowed on the battlefield at any given time. However, the teammate in reserve can be tagged in at any point during the match. When any single member of a team is unable to battle, the match will end and the side with both participants still remaining standing will be announced the victor. Therefore tagging in teammates at crucial times will be a vital part of this match as neither team can afford to lose any member. That being said we've added one extra stipulation to this final match to spice things up. Once and only once during this match, either team is allowed to call in all members of their squad into battle for three minutes. During this time both members of a team are allowed to be on the battlefield at the same time, which should lead to some spectacular displays of teamwork. So without further ado, let us have the two participants who wish to start this battle step up and their teammates head back to the waiting area."

"We've worked hard for this moment. Let's do this Hinata!" Naruto encouraged his teammate as he stepped forward to be the one to start the match.

"Indeed, I believe in our team Naruto-kun. Let us win, together." Hinata replied with unyielding confidence in her voice as she left for the waiting area.

"Sasuke-kun…please be careful." On the other side Sakura tried to encourage her own teammate in a shaky voice.

"I don't need your concern. You know the drill, don't get in my way." Sasuke replied sternly as he stepped up to face Naruto, a cynical smirk now appearing on his face. "How ironic that I'd face you of all people at the finals of the chunin exams. Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised. This has been a long time coming. Right here, with all eyes upon us, I will prove once and for all that I am in fact the strongest amongst all my peers. That is the rightful place as an Uchiha such as myself. Neither you nor that Hyuga can compare."

"I guess we'll find out right now who's better. I've wanted to settle this score for a long time as well. So bring it on Sasuke!"

Naruto and Sasuke had shared a heated rivalry from the very first day they entered the academy and it only got worse over the years as the two tried to one up one another at every chance they got. Even though Sasuke graduated with the highest marks from the academy, it burned him inside that not only were Naruto and Hinata considered to be the best team amongst their peers, but also the best genin team in ages, only being rivalled by their parents. Likewise the idea of Sasuke being considered the single strongest shinobi amongst their peers burned Naruto up inside and he wanted to finally knock Sasuke down from his pedestal given this opportunity. Both of them prepared to give it their all.

"If both contestants are ready…BEGIN!" The referee shouted at the top of his voice and the battle was underway.

"Brace yourself Naruto, for I am going to show you who the true master of the ninja arts is between the two of us!" Sasuke wasted no time and started to charge up an intense burst of lightning in his right hand.

"Give it your best shot Sasuke!" In response Naruto formed a spiralling ball of energy in his own right hand.

"CHIDORI!"

"RASENGAN!"

The two charged directly at one another and collided their incredibly powerful techniques, ones that defied their ranks of genin. Thus the battle was truly underway.

Up in the observation tower, this was the first time Itachi was witnessing Naruto use the rasengan and he was intrigued. "So I take it when you told me that you'd be borrowing Naruto for a few weeks prior to the chunin exams, it was to teach him that technique."

Jiraiya smiled as he watched Naruto trying to overcome Sasuke with his father's technique. "Well, he can't openly carry the legacy of his father given the circumstances. So I thought the most appropriate way to give him at least a part of his parent's lineage would be to teach him his father's original technique. What do you think, Kakashi?"

"I'm surprised Naruto was able to learn the rasengan in just a few weeks. It took sensei so long to create it. I'm sure if he were here he would be proud of Naruto for mastering one of his most complex techniques in such a short period of time." Even though Kakashi was Sasuke's teacher and by proxy hoping for his own student to win, even he couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia seeing Naruto use his father's technique. Right now Kakashi could almost see a part of Minato reflected in Naruto.

Back on the battlefield the fight only heated up further in intensity. Naruto and Sasuke threw everything they had at each other, one ninja art after another – a relentless onslaught of techniques ranging from Naruto's almost never ending barrage of shadow clones to Sasuke's deadly fireballs that littered the battlefield. They went at each other with no holds barred and threw nearly every ninjutsu they had learned ever since they became genin in order to prove each other's superiority. To the onlookers who watched in awe at the skill level in display, this hardly seemed like a bout between two genin. However in the end they both exhausted themselves from overexertion and collapsed on to their knees.

They were just too evenly matched.

Naruto quickly came to that realisation and decided that to win the match in the long run, he would have to back out for the time being and keep himself in the game so that he could restore his stamina and get back into the fight down the line. Thus he decided to call upon his teammate.

"Hinata, switch with me."

Instantly Hinata jumped into the fray and tagged in with her teammate. "You were amazing Naruto-kun. Please rest up for now while I take point."

Naruto nodded and left the battlefield.

On the other end Sakura also jumped to Sasuke's side, ready to tag in. But to her dismay he refused to let her take his place.

"Please Sasuke-kun, let me take your place."

"I don't need your help to defeat them. I'll do it by myself."

"But Sasuke-kun-"

Before Sakura could finish her sentence, Sasuke cut her off and gave her a venomous glare. "I thought I already told you, STAY OUT OF MY WAY!"

The crazed look in his eyes scared Sakura for a second and she was forced to retreat despite her reluctance and to the crowd's shock at the altercation between the two teammates.

"Naruto Uzumaki has wisely switched out to Hinata Hyuga, but it would appear that there is some form of dissention within team seven. Sasuke Uchiha has decided to not tag in his teammate and is going to remain in battle to face Hinata Hyuga. One would question the wisdom behind such a decision given the all out bout he just had with Naruto Uzumaki." Ebisu summed up on commentary what the entire audience had in mind. "Regardless, the battle continues."

"You did not have to treat her in such an awful manner. She is your teammate after all and she was only looking out for you." Hinata voiced her disagreement towards Sasuke's terrible treatment of Sakura.

"How I treat my own teammate is none of your concern. There is a bigger picture at play here." Sasuke finally activated his Sharingan and glared directly at Hinata. "It is time we settled the age old question of which one of our eyes is superior. You Hyuga consider yourselves masters of close quarters combat. I will show you that even you can be outdone in what you might consider your forte."

Hinata always knew that Sasuke was a very prideful person ever since the academy days. He held his Uchiha heritage in very high regards and ultimately let it get to his head. But it had somehow gotten even worse ever since they graduated, mistreating his teammate and underestimating others. She never did like his personality and only found it confusing when the other girls at the academy would freak out over him. Even though Hinata was generally non-confrontational and followed the philosophy of live and let live, right now she felt that the Uchiha in front of her needed to be brought down a notch for underestimating her clan. Thus she activated her own eyes and took one of her clan's signature stances. The crowd braced themselves, for this was Hyuga vs Uchiha. Byakugan vs Sharingan.

Overconfident in his abilities, Sasuke rushed right at Hinata and entered into hand-to-hand combat with her in a sparring contest. He went on the offensive, giving it his all to outdo her in her own game, but Hinata remained calm and countered all of his moves with grace. Sasuke's pride would not let him admit it, but after the battle with Naruto, he was nowhere near his optimal levels. In fact he was struggling to continue as exhaustion was setting in. His movements were sluggish and his attacks weak. This allowed Hinata to easily deflect his attacks away with gentle flicks of her wrist while throwing in a few offensive jabs here and there to weaken him up even further. This process continued for an extended period of time as Sasuke simply refused back down and acknowledge that his strategy just wasn't working. The longer it went on the slower and weaker his attacks became, allowing Hinata free reign to defend as she pleased. It was becoming abundantly clear to everyone watching that Sasuke was simply outclassed in his scenario, so much so that it was just getting harder and harder to watch.

Sasuke gasped for breath but continued on the offensive. He could never accept that any one of his peers, neither Naruto nor Hinata could be better than him in any aspect. In his eyes he was superior to them all.

" _The Uchiha are the strongest clan in the Konoha. The Hyuga nor anyone else can compare. Then why aren't any of my moves connecting? How can she counter them all?"_ Sasuke asked himself within his mind while struggling to continue. He didn't know why but at this point his forearms were stinging with pain, making it very difficult to even move them. Despite this he swung one of his arms at his opponent in a last ditch desperate attempt.

Hinata ducked to avoid the attack, catching his arm from below with one hand and she thrust her other palm at Sasuke's chest, causing him stagger in position. She took this opportunity to pull up Sasuke's sleeve to expose his forearm, which had countless red marks all across it as though it had been stung by a hive of bees. The sight made many in the crowd cringe, even surprising Sasuke himself. Although it looked like Hinata was on the defensive the whole time, in reality with each flick of her wrist that she used to deflect his attack, she also injected the weak spots within his hands with bursts of energy, causing passive damage over time that built up to something severe.

"Sasuke-kun, I think you've done enough. First fighting Naruto-kun and now me, you've pushed yourself far beyond what your body is capable of. However, any further than this and you may seriously get hurt. So I implore you to back down. There is no shame in doing so." Hinata requested earnestly as she genuinely worried about her opponent's wellbeing.

However Sasuke was furious. He was about to launch another attack when Hinata decided to finally go on the offensive herself and thrust both of her palms into his midsection with immense force and speed, sending him flying backwards through the air several feet and crashing on to the ground. She needed to shut him down for his own good.

In the crowd many of the Hyuga clan members were grinning ear to ear despite their generally stoic appearances. To be able to see an Uchiha put in his place by a Hyuga was a rare treat that needed to be savoured.

"THAT'S RIGHT HINATA-SAMA! SHOW THAT UCHIHA KID WHO'S BOSS!" One of the younger Hyuga decided to shout some encouragement at Hinata as several others started to join in.

"QUIET!" One of the Hyuga elders shut them all up with a menacing glare. "Such disorderly conduct from any of our clan members will NOT be tolerated."

"Y-Yes! We're sorry."

The elder, having shut up the younger members now focused back on Hinata. Although outwardly she showed an emotionless appearance, inwardly she too was full of glee. _"That's right Hinata. Beat the **** out of that Uchiha boy."_

The rest of the elders were all enjoying every moment Hinata dominated the fight. As always she proved to be a worthy successor to the clan, making them proud of her exceptional capabilities as a Hyuga. The elders all agreed that Hinata was perhaps one of the most gifted Hyuga to have ever been born, and in due time she would become the strongest amongst them all.

Back on the battlefield, Sasuke barely managed to get himself back on his feet, his body almost on the verge of collapse from exhaustion and the damage he suffered thus far. And it was only going to get worse from here.

Hinata raised her hand in the air, signalling for the timer to start on the team collaboration between herself and Naruto. The referee gave the nod and instantly Naruto jumped back into the fray, refreshed and revitalised, the two of them having three minutes together on the battlefield.

"Sasuke-kun, please call me in! We can face them together as well!" Sakura desperately shouted at her teammate from the waiting area, but she was ignored. Even when outnumbered, Sasuke simply would not accept help.

"I refuse to lose…to the likes of you. If I can't beat you two with ninjutsu or taijutsu, I'll just have to use my own specialty and your weakness to do so – GENJUTSU!" Sasuke begrudgingly raised his gaze towards Naruto and Hinata, hoping to catch them in a powerful genjutsu of the Sharingan. Little did he realise that the weakness they once had of genjutsu was no longer the case given their training with Itachi.

"Naruto-kun, let's end this."

"Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique!" Naruto covered the entire stadium with a thick cloud of mist within seconds, one that reduced visibility to zero. That was for almost everyone but those with the Byakugan. Hinata could still see clearly through the mist and guided Naruto, who himself couldn't see anything, to set up their combined assault.

Sasuke frantically looked around for any signs of movement around him, but he could barely see anything through the mist, even with his Sharingan. It was at this point he realised that the Byakugan did not suffer from this issue and could see through everything, giving them their namesake "All Seeing Eyes". He conjured up the last bits of his strength to let loose a fireball into the air that blew away all the mist covering the area along with it.

But it was too late. He was already surrounded.

"NOW NARUTO-KUN!" Upon Hinata's order Naruto locked up Sasuke's arms and legs from behind with his own, pinning him in position like a rag doll.

"Release me!" Despite how much Sasuke struggled, he just didn't have the strength to fight out of Naruto's grasp.

"It's open season Hinata. Do your worse!" Naruto advised his teammate before giving Sasuke a cynical smirk. "As for your pompous ass, brace yourself. This is gonna hurt."

Hinata got in position to deliver one of her clan's signature and most powerful techniques. "Gentle Fist Art: 64 Palms!"

With her target held in position and unable to move, it really was open season for Hinata to do as she pleased. She surgically jabbed Sasuke at all of his weak spots, delivering one decisive blow after another while he had no choice but to accept them. Each hit felt like the sting of a killer bee, but the after effects were much worse. This continued until all 64 strikes were delivered, at which point Naruto finally slackened his hold on Sasuke, leaving the Uchiha to crumple down on to the ground face first as the two both backed away from him.

"Sasuke Uchiha has fallen. It might be over." Ebisu announced.

The audience gasped out of surprise because just like that, the match seemed to be over. The referee came over and crouched down to check on Sasuke, who was currently motionless. After a brief investigation, he stood up to raise the flag in his hand to signal Naruto and Hinata's victory.

But at that moment there was movement once again on the ground. As even more of a shocker, Sasuke was scrambling on to his feet once more. Somehow, someway, the young Uchiha kept himself in the fight. "I…refuse to lose…to the likes of them. The Uchiha…are the strongest."

Seeing her teammate struggling to even stand, Sakura once again rushed next to him, hoping that finally he would rely on her. "Sasuke-kun, I'm begging you. Please tag me in. You're in no condition to continue."

But Sasuke once again did not pay any attention to her and started to take slow steps towards Naruto and Hinata.

At this point Sakura finally had enough of being ignored and forcefully blocked Sasuke off, standing in his path. "I won't let you go any further. I just want to help. At least let me fight until you have regained some of your strength." She asserted.

Her actions however had the complete opposite effect than she envisioned. To the utter shock and horror of everyone present at the event, Sasuke grabbed Sakura by the throat with both hands and lifted her off the ground.

"Sasuke-kun…" Even when treated in such horrible manner, she still refused to fight back against her own teammate.

"I thought I told you to stay out of my way! You're nothing but an eyesore, a distraction, a weakness. Therefore, stand aside!" Sasuke gazed directly into Sakura's eyes, catching her in one of his Sharingan's genjutsus before tossing her aside like trash.

No one could believe what they were seeing. Sasuke's actions went from detestable to truly vile.

"He didn't just-" Shisui gasped, realising what his brother just did to his own teammate. "We have to stop him."

"You will do no such thing!" Fugaku warned, raising his hand towards his son.

"But father-"

"No buts! That is an order! Now sit down!"

Shisui gritted his teeth and sat down to his dismay.

"Are you crazy? What the heck did you do that for? She's your teammate!" Naruto's eyes were wide in disbelief seeing Sakura get tossed aside so nonchalantly.

"She was only trying to help you." Hinata added.

"As I said before, I don't need her help. Those who are weak are the ones who need help. I alone am strong enough. She is useless to me!"

"Alright, I've heard enough of your drivel. I was hoping you'd learn your lesson by now but that clearly does not seem to have been the case. It seems we'll need to beat some real sense into you." Naruto threatened the Uchiha out of anger. He then looked at Hinata and shared a knowing glance, holding his hand forward.

"You're wrong Sasuke-kun. Relying on someone does not make you weak. If there is someone you love and wish to protect, that only makes you stronger. We will show you right now a power that can only be achieved through teamwork alone." Hinata herself placed her own hand atop Naruto as a blue lion head now took shape around their joined hands and a larger, more powerful rasengan formed within its mouth. It was a combination of two of their strongest techniques, resulting in a truly powerful collaboration technique.

"So this is your combined power? Give me your worst! I'm sure it'll be weak, just like my teammate over there! Bring it!" Despite not having the ability to counter his opponents any longer, Sasuke however remained unphased, appearing more maniacal than anything.

Both Naruto and Hinata were now at their wits end. There was a limit to how much someone could look down upon others. Sasuke truly needed to be taught a lesson in tough love, avenging Sakura in the process. Thus they prepared to charge at Sasuke together.

"I've seen enough! This needs to stop before Sasuke seriously gets hurt." Shisui was about ready to interfere, but someone else had already pulled that trigger.

To the utter bewilderment of everyone watching, Itachi suddenly appeared before Sasuke and kneed him hard in the guts before slamming his head down forcefully into the ground.

"Itachi…what are you-" Before Sasuke could finish, his older brother gazed into his eyes with his own Sharingan, catching him in his genjutsu.

"You've done enough damage to yourself and the Uchiha in one day. Go to sleep for now, little brother." Hearing those last words from Itachi, Sasuke lost consciousness.

The referee, seeing the interference waved for the match to be ended.

"I-It would appear that the referee has made his decision. Due to interference from Team Zero's instructor, this match will end in disqualification. Therefore your winners by disqualification and the team to be promoted to Chunin status – SASUKE UCHIHA AND SAKURA HARUNO!" Ebisu announced on the microphone and was instantly met with a chorus of boos and jeers, getting water bottles and trash thrown his way. "I-I'm just the messenger! Don't kill the messenger!"

The entire arena erupted in a cacophony of negativity and anger at the referee's decision and people started to voice their opinions.

"THAT'S NOT FAIR! TEAM ZERO WON!"

"THAT'S RIGHT! REVERSE YOUR STUPID DECISION!"

"WE ALL SAW WHAT HAPPENED! THAT UCHIHA KID GOT HIS ASS WHOOPED AND WAS ABOUT TO BITE THE DUST! THE UZUMAKI AND HYUGA WON FARE AND SQUARE!"

"THIS IS BULLCRAP! THAT UCHIHA DOESN'T DESERVE TO BE PROMOTED! HE WAS JUST BEING PROTECTED AT THE END! HE DIDN'T WIN!"

"CHANGE YOUR DECISION OR ELSE!"

Complaints after complaints were being voiced and it was turning into full blown chaos.

Naruto and Hinata stood still, not sure what was going on anymore. They appreciated the crowd's support but at the same time were a bit disappointed for having lost. But most importantly, they were just surprised by their teacher's actions.

As though he was reading their minds, Itachi appeared before them at that very moment. "I'm sorry Naruto, Hinata. Please forgive me for intervening. But I did what had to be done. Sasuke's actions today are going to have far bigger consequences within the clan than just the chunin exams. As crazy as he may have been, he is still my brother and I needed to stop him before he got himself into any further trouble. Once again, I apologise. The two of you have every right to be angry at me and my brother."

Hinata shook her head in response. "There's no way we could be mad at you sensei. I can understand how you feel. If something like this happened with my sister, I'd want to stop her as well from going astray."

"She's right. Maybe we were going a little overboard in the end. I just can't believe how different you brothers are. Regardless, as Hinata said, I understand that this must be tough for you as well. Don't worry about it. Although it does suck a bit, we can always try next year to become chunin. With an awesome teacher like you, it should be a cinch."

Itachi was glad to have his students' support. The three of them shared a very close-knit relationship as a team after all. But the crowd at the arena were just not having it. It looked like a riot could break out any second. Thus to pacify the audience, Jiraiya finally took to the microphone.

"Everyone please calm down and listen to what I have to say." Jiraiya requested and almost instantly the entire crowd fell silent to show respect to the Hokage. "Thank you. Firstly I'd like to congratulate all the participants in this tournament, in particular the top 8. I've been watching all of their matches and I'm truly happy to see how far they've progressed ever since graduating from the academy. This year above most others, we've had some very stiff competition, which speaks volumes of the contestants at hand. Now to address the more controversial ending to the tournament – I absolutely understand your concerns. However, we should remember the true purpose of the chunin exams. It is a means by which the genin can showcase their talent and teamwork in order to earn a promotion. A friendly sparring contest if you will and not an actual battle between shinobi. Even more so, it is NOT a means by which to settle personal vendettas, especially if it leads to any kind of serious injury. To that end from having watched the whole match, I believe Sasuke Uchiha was no longer fit to compete at the end and any further altercations would have posed a risk of serious injury. That is something I could not afford and as such decided to stop the match through Itachi Uchiha's intervention. It was my executive decision as the Hokage, which the referee was not aware of. And as Hokage I get to have the final say in who gets promoted to chunin anyway. Therefore, having seen both their outstanding individual and team performances throughout this tournament, I deem Team Zero the victors of this year's chunin exams!"

"There you have it folks! Your winners by Hokage's decision and the newly promoted chunin – NARUTO UZUMAKI AND HINATA HYUGA!" Ebisu announced at the top of his lungs and this time the entire arena was overtaken by a thunderous applause. The crowd was going crazy over their favourites rightfully winning the tournament.

"They did it Otou-sama! Naruto-nii and Nee-sama won!" Hanabi squealed in joy.

"She did well. Very well in fact." One of the elders congratulated Hiashi, which was rare considering how stoic they normally were. "You have trained a worthy successor Hiashi. I think we all can agree that the Hyuga's future is bright. You should let that fact be known to Hinata, albeit in moderation. Perhaps your decision to overlook the Uzumaki child was more than of personal benefit after all."

Hiashi was surprised to hear those words coming from the elders, who all seemed to be in unanimous appreciation of Hinata's performance at the exams. Praise coming from them was a rare commodity and he did have to vouch for Naruto in order to integrate him with the Hyuga without repercussions from the elders after Minato was considered to be a traitor to the village. Despite everything, he knew all along that this was inevitable. After all, Naruto and Hinata were just following in their parents' footsteps as a team.

On the other side of the arena, Mikoto looked like she was about to cry after watching everything that had transpired with her son. Shisui was simply left speechless.

"Disgraceful." That was the only word Fugaku uttered before he got up from his seat and walked away. However, he had the faintest trace of a smile that his family would miss.

On the battlefield itself Naruto and Hinata were overcome with joy.

"We did it Naruto-kun! We finally became chunin!"

"That's right Hinata! All our hard work paid off!"

The two raised their hands in the air and gently bumped the back of their fists together. It was a small gesture the two had created during their time as a team to celebrate their victories.

"You two did well indeed. You've made me proud." Itachi gently tapped both of his students on their foreheads with his index and middle fingers. This was one of Itachi's unique ways in which he showed affection to his students. Despite appearing distant at first, he was ultimately a caring person.

Naruto now looked up at the podium where Jiraiya was standing and pointed directly at him. "Watch out pervy sage, this is the first step towards me taking your place as the Hokage."

"And I'll be there to support you along the way." Hinata reassured.

Thus, Naruto and Hinata became chunin.

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

Sarada was speechless as the video came to an end with the celebration of Naruto and Hinata becoming chunin. She finally understood what Naruto had meant when he said that he entrusted his very life to his teammate. The two of them in her eyes were a perfect team in flawless sync. They were a perfect storm.

On the other hand, her parents had no semblance of teamwork between them. But more importantly, the way in which her father treated her mother was truly deplorable. She always felt that her parents did not have the kind of normal relationship that other couples probably had. They appeared a bit dysfunctional in that regard, but she didn't expect it to have been this bad. She was starting to wonder for the first time why her parents even married if this was how they were as a team.

However, she couldn't put much time into her thoughts as some student burst into the library to deliver a huge message. "GUYS, GUYS, THERE'S SOME CRAZY STUFF GOING ON IN FRONT OF THE HOKAGE'S TOWER! APPARENTLY THEY FINALLY CAUGHT THE TRAITOR THAT HELPED PERPETRATE KIRIGAKURE'S ATTACK FROM BACK IN THE DAY! LET'S GO THERE TO SEE!"

Instantly all the students at the library scrambled out of their seats to go see for themselves who the traitor was. Even though many of them were born after the huge battle between Kirigakure and Konohagakure took place, the incident was very widely known as one that had nearly destroyed the village, and also one where Naruto became the hero and saviour of Konoha.

Sarada too followed her fellow academy compatriots to the scene in front of the Hokage's tower. There was already a huge crowd gathered at the place, making it very difficult to see who the perpetrator was. However, due to her small size, she managed to squeeze herself through the crowd and make it to the very front. When she did arrive, the first person she heard was one of her classmates.

"This…this can't be true." Shikadai said in disbelief of what he saw, his face overtaken by fear.

Sarada was surprised to see her otherwise uncaring classmate show so much emotion for the very first time. That was until she looked forward and towards the man being held in position in front of the Hokage by several ANBU – the traitor of Konoha, the one who almost choreographed the destruction of this village. Instantly Sarada understood the horror in her classmate's eyes.

That traitor in question was none other than Shikamaru Nara, the Hokage's very advisor.

* * *

Surprised with the end? Next chapter will shine more light into it. That being said all the events of this chapter actually has a deeper story thread involved. I'll leave you to speculate on that for now. I'd love to hear your thoughts as always.

 **NarHina:** I really loved the idea that of Boruto running away from his parents and Naruto and Hinata having to work together, unwittingly, to find him, getting back together in the process. Although this won't happen in the actual reunion, it's something interesting that I could see myself writing.

 **SpicyWifey:** Yes, Hinata isn't going to take to the fact that Naruto has been meeting Boruto behind her back very well to say the least.

 **Miss Rizz:** Thank you so much for your kind words. Let's just say that I love me my AUs. They let me (hopefully) create some interesting scenarios.

That is all for today. I hope you're looking forward to the next chapter. So until then, be well and I'll see you all next time.


	24. The Traitor of Konoha Part 2

**The Traitor of Konoha Part 2**

Woooo! We finally surpassed 100,000 views. That's a pretty crazy stat. Thank you all for your great support and without any further wait, let's get started with this chapter.

* * *

Sarada's eyes were wide in shock. She still couldn't quite believe what she was seeing. But even more so than her, it was her classmate Shikadai who was the most affected by this turn of events. His father was being framed as being a traitor to Konoha even though he knew how loyal his father was to the village. He just could not accept this and looked around desperately to find someone or some way to save his father. Almost as though to answer his call, he saw his mother part the crowd of people in two and make her way aggressively to the front to stand face to face with the Hokage.

"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?!" Temari asked, no, shouted at the officials. "I just arrived here from Sunagakure and the first thing I hear of is some ridiculous accusation made against my husband. And now I'm seeing this. WHAT'S THE MEANING BEHIND THIS?! ANSWER ME, NARUTO!"

Even though Temari was fuming with rage, Naruto remained calm in his response. "It is as you see. We have reason to believe that the Nara over here was the one who leaked vital secrets of our village to the Mizukage, leading to the invasion of Konoha 8 years ago by Kirigakure's forces. More importantly however, we have discovered evidence that this man is currently in communication with the Raikage and once again attempting to set up some form of coup d'état with his help. As such, because of his actions he will be charged with high treason against Konoha and face trials for his crimes."

"WHAT?! Are you crazy?" Temari was furious beyond words and intended to defend her husband to the bitter end. "Shikamaru would never do such a thing. He is your advisor, your right hand man. There is non more loyal to you and Konoha than him. All of these accusations are just rubbish."

"That…is what I expected as well. However, the truth is the truth, as ugly it may be. Even though he may have been the one I handpicked as my right hand man, it is clear that I made a terrible decision, only placing my worst enemy next to myself. But perhaps this is all to be expected. This man, he is the one who orchestrated the entire invasion of Konoha all those years ago. To him everything that happened thus far was all according to plan. He always intended to destroy us from the inside, following the old philosophy of keeping your friends close but your enemies closer. Someone like him must face the harshest of penalties."

"I'VE HEARD ENOUGH! Let go of him or else-" Temari blinded by her anger reached her hand out to grab the giant fan on her back in order to free Shikamaru from his captives, but in the blink of an eye nearly a dozen ANBU leaped towards her with their weapons drawn, ready to strike.

"STOP THIS INSTANT!" Naruto's order was absolute and the ANBU instantly stopped in their tracks. Over ten swords were inches away from Temari's throat, pointed toward her from all directions. If not for Naruto, this would have ended in disaster.

"Drawing your weapon in front of the Hokage is grounds for execution on the spot. You're lucky that the Hokage has a generous soul. However, next time you will not be so lucky." One of the ANBU warned in a truly menacing tone.

"I said enough. Back off! There is no need for unnecessary bloodshed." Naruto ordered once more and this time the ANBU all withdrew their weapons and retreated at once.

The altercation helped Temari calm down slightly so that she was no longer completely blinded by anger, but she was still fuming with rage regardless. "This is wrong Naruto. Shikamaru is being framed. You're being fooled. I thought you above all people would understand that."

"If you truly believe that to be the case then there need not be any worries. He will be given a proper trial where he'll have the chance to prove his innocence. However, as it stands we have far more evidence to prove that he is indeed guilty as charged."

"I won't let anything happen to Shikamaru. I KNOW that he is innocent and you Naruto will face the consequences of your decisions. Do not think that Sunagakure will simply stand by and watch all of this unfold to one who shares a familial tie with the Kazekage himself. Gaara will not take lightly to this either."

"If Gaara intends to jeopardise the alliance between Konoha and Suna because of this, then let him talk to me face to face. We'll settle it then. But I will not allow any outside political pressure influence the internal affairs within Konoha. Justice will be done at all costs." Naruto stated with the utmost authority, making his power as the Hokage felt.

"We'll see about that. Shikadai, we're going back to Suna." Temari turned around and grabbed her son's hand, dragging him away with her to her home village, not before glancing back at Shikamaru and giving him a reassuring look that she would be back soon to free him as well.

Thus to the shock of everyone present, Shikamaru Nara, the Hokage's advisor was taken away and locked up in order to face trials on charges of high treason against Konoha.

 **A few days later…**

It was an hour past midnight. Most of the village was deep asleep right now, but two individuals used the cover of the night to further their nefarious plans once more.

"As we discussed earlier, deliver this scroll to the Raikage as swiftly as possible. That is your next mission." The older of the two ordered while handing over a sealed scroll.

"I don't mean to question your judgement but does this not seem a little too convenient? Do we even know why the Hokage considered Nara to be the traitor? Clearly he has made a mistake. Perhaps this is a set up." The younger man who was wearing a cloaked hoodie to obscure his identity spoke his concerns.

"Do you not think I haven't considered that possibility? At this point it is a matter of balancing risk with reward. Our plans were brought to a halt for far too long due to the strict surveillance that the Hokage placed upon the village. We have wasted far too much time. We must act with haste to ensure the Raikage's support. That is why I need you to deliver the information contained within that scroll to him post haste. The messenger from the other side will be in the usual place. Proceed with caution. You are the best amongst us, so I know you can complete this mission without fail, just as you have done in the past."

"Very well, if that is what you wish, then I shall get it done…father." The young shinobi nodded and hid away the scroll within his cloak and disappeared into the shadows in the darkness of the night.

It didn't take long before the shadowy figure was out of Konoha and was now headed deep into the hidden leaf forest. The journey to the destination would be long but at least his path seemed to be clear given the cover of the night. Or so he thought until his senses started tingling. Before he even realised it he felt the presence of not just one but a group of people around him. He was surrounded. Despite this he kept dashing through the treeline in the hopes of finding an opportunity to shake off his pursuers.

"STOP! THERE'S NO USE RUNNING! WE'VE GOT YOU CORNERED AND OUTNUMBERED! STOP OR WE WILL ENGAGE!" One of the pursuers shouted from within the trees.

Realising that he didn't have anywhere to run to, the cloaked figure chose to throw out a ninja art in order to create a diversion for his escape. Just as he was about to initiate his technique however, out of nowhere someone collided into him head on and shoved an incredibly powerful technique into his midsection, sending him crashing into the nearest tree and immobilising him for good.

"I don't think you'll be getting out of this one, not after it took so long to finally capture you." Naruto said to the perpetrator as he defused rasengan and brought his hand out from the small dent he had caused in his target's body with his technique.

The group of pursuing ANBU jumped out of the trees and were genuinely shocked to be seeing the Hokage out here in this place at this time. "Hokage-sama, what are you doing here? It was our job to capture him."

"It was. I did assign you that task. But I'm just not the type of person to be sitting around waiting for results, especially when it's a matter of such high importance. In any case, we've finally caught the perpetrator. It's time to get some answers."

Naruto grabbed the hood of the person lying in front of him and with slightly shaking hands pulled it back to reveal an all too familiar face. The discovery of the perpetrator's true identity at last, the one who was behind much of his suffering and loss left Naruto breathless. Sai Shimura stared back at Naruto with an expressionless demeanour.

"Sai…even though I had a feeling it would be you, but to find you here is still unbelievable." Naruto's voice seemed like it was about to break.

In response an uncaring smirk appeared on Sai's face. "So you found out. I thought something was definitely wrong when Shikamaru was thought to be the traitor. It was all a set up in the end huh?"

"How could I not know? The information that you gave the Raikage before, information regarding my personal life is something only the people I considered closest to myself would know. That's why the pool of peoplewas severely shortened and given that Shikamaru was the one person I trusted with my very life, I had him play along with my plan, not informing anyone else about it, even his own family just to ensure nothing leaked." Naruto explained. "But you…I thought of you as one of my closest friends Sai! Then why?! Why did you do this to me?! Why would you betray your friend…your own village?!"

"That feeling of being a close friend, have you ever considered that feeling may not have been mutual? Have you considered that perhaps not everyone was happy with the idea of you becoming Hokage?"

Naruto grabbed Sai by the collar and shook him violently, his emotions now flaring. "Are you serious? You went as far as to set me up as a traitor and help Kirigakure in invading Konoha just to stop me from being next in line to become Hokage? And now that I'm Hokage, you're willing to enlist the Raikage's help in order to overthrow me? What's the end goal of all this? TELL ME!"

"You are not the right person to be Hokage. You never were and you never will be. Your dream of walking in your father's footsteps should have remained as such – a dream. This village needs someone else more deserving of that title that can lead it down the correct path." Sai replied in a cold tone.

The words stung but Naruto knew that there was nothing he could say right now to change his so-called friend's mind. All he could do was to forcefully take the scroll intended for the Raikage from Sai. He unsealed the scroll with ease given his great mastery of sealing techniques and opened it up in order to read the contents.

With each line he read, Naruto questioned what his eyes saw in pure disbelief. By the time he reached the end of the message, Naruto's heart was at his throat. This was truly malicious, even more so than he could have imagined.

The scroll contained details on Hinata's current location, this time in far more detail than what was given to the Raikage previously, pinpointing the exact village where Hinata worked and her whereabouts. What was even worse however was the fact that the message made mention of Boruto, intending to inform the Raikage of the existence of the Hokage's one and only son and how he wielded a Byakugan as well, which had the potential to be far on par if not stronger than his mother's. As such he would be even more of a suitable target to have his Byakugan extracted than his mother.

In exchange of this information and a willingness to help in the capture of Hinata and Boruto, the traitors sought an alliance with the Raikage and his assistance in an eventual overthrowing of the Hokage from his position of power.

"H-How did you know their w-whereabouts?" Naruto asked in a shaky voice.

"Naruto, you are far too naïve. There exist eyes in this world that are far beyond your comprehension. No one is safe from those prying eyes."

Naruto was at his wits end. If Sai wouldn't have been caught, the Raikage would have had free reign to arrive at Hinata's doorstep at any point and attempt to capture both her and their son at will. These people treated his wife and child not as human beings, but like farm animals that could be sold to someone else for a good price. That thought filled Naruto with seething rage as he clenched his fists so hard that his fingers punctured his palms and blood poured freely. Naruto swung his right fist with immense power and punched Sai so hard that he knocked him out cold in just one shot.

"Take him away and lock him up. We're going to the root of all this." Naruto ordered his ANBU before rushing towards the man that was at the heart of all this scheming and plotting.

Given his mad dash it didn't take long for Naruto to return back to Konoha as he currently stood in the front yard of the Shimura clan house. His battalion of ANBU surrounded the entire compound to ensure that no one was able to escape.

"DANZO!" Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice overcome with hatred. "GET OUT HERE THIS INSTANT!"

It took a minute but sure enough Danzo along with several other members of his clan came out to the courtyard to address the ruckus outside.

"What is the meaning of this Hokage, visiting us at this time and causing such a scene?" Danzo asked in his ever so calm voice.

"Lay off the charade Danzo. The jig is up and the truth is out. Sai has been caught. We know you're behind this!" Naruto laid it out straight.

Despite the huge revelation, Danzo's expression barely showed any change and he remained just as calm as ever.

Naruto closed the distance between the two of them and got up into his face. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue? I'm giving you a chance, speak. What you've done is unacceptable."

Despite the accusations being levied upon Danzo, a voice within him compelled him not to speak. And he followed that voice.

"Silence will only mean confession to your crimes. Speak Danzo. Why the heck would you do this to your own village even though you are one of the members of the council? Was it all to become Hokage, because you thought I was unworthy?"

Yet again Danzo refused to speak, remaining unphazed in his demeanour. This silence was driving Naruto even crazier than he already was right now.

As such he closed the distance between himself and the old man ever further and spoke directly into his ears so as to not allow anyone else to hear their conversion. "Tell me, were you the one who tried to kill Hinata 8 years ago during the invasion of Konoha?"

For the first time ever, Naruto felt a reaction from the Shimura. He pulled back slightly to look him eye to eye, only to find the old man give him a cynical smirk as if to relish in the crimes that he committed and the great suffering he had imparted upon the Uzumaki.

"WHY YOU!" At this point Naruto was livid as he grabbed Danzo and shoved him to the ground. All these years of pain he had suffered and the loss of his family, it was this man's fault. And he didn't seem to feel even a shard of remorse for it. Naruto felt like beating the living daylights out of this man with his bare fists right then and there.

Before he could do so several ANBU jumped in and quickly held Naruto back.

"You mustn't Hokage-sama. You mustn't take justice into your own hands. As vile as this man's crimes may be, he still needs to be given a proper trial. Not to mention, there is much information we have yet to extract from him." One of the ANBU explained to Naruto. She in particular understood Naruto's pain more so than anyone else as she herself suffered through much of the same. It was her sister that the Shimura tried to kill after all.

Naruto came back of his senses and regained his posture. "You're right. I wasn't going to let this man get away with so little. I'm not going to let my anger get the best of me here. Take him away and lock him up. We'll go from there."

The ANBU followed the Hokage's orders and did as they were asked. Naruto didn't feel like staying out any longer and just wanted to return home. It had been an eventful few days trying to set up a trap in order to capture the real perpetrators, but this turned out to be a lot easier than expected. There was a far more elaborate plan Naruto had in mind if the initial phase of Shikamaru being announced as the traitor did not work, but the real culprits fell for it instantly, perhaps in their haste.

Even though there were many conflicting emotions flowing through Naruto right now, there was one in particular that prevailed above all. Naruto was glad that he was able to protect his family for now before it was too late, and given the capture of the traitors of Konoha he could finally work towards mending his relationship with Hinata once again. There was a silver lining to these dark clouds after all.

 **Amegakure, the next morning…**

Kushina rushed into Minato's hospital room and gasped for breath in order to regain her ability to speak. "Minato! Have you heard, Danzo and his accomplices within the Shimura clan have been captured under charges of aiding Kirigakure during the invasion and trying to enlist the Raikage's aid against Konoha once more at present?!"

"Yes I got the news earlier. This is a disaster."

"At this rate Naruto will be in big trouble soon. We have to do something."

"You're right. We have to act and fast. But with my body still not having recovered completely, I can't carry forward your plan right now."

"Minato, what do we do?" Kushina wracked her brain for answers, as she was truly worried about her son at this point.

"Kushina, I know you may not necessarily like this idea at first but I've got a contingency plan. There is one person who can take my place in this mission. He is the only one."

It didn't take Kushina long to realise whom Minato was referring to and she disagreed vehemently. "NO WAY! Not him. I won't allow it."

"It can only be him Kushina. I already spoke to him earlier about it and he is happy to take on this mission in my stead. He is the only other person in this village who is strong enough besides me to be able to stand up to Naruto. We have no other choice."

Kushina still shook her head in disagreement. "After what happened to you earlier, I can't bear to see the same happen to him as well. I just can't take this anymore."

Minato grabbed his wife's hand in order to gain her attention. "Kushina, you have to put your faith in him. He is our only hope now. Please…"

"Minato…" Kushina softened up to the idea ever so lightly but was still going to argue her case when they both heard someone at the door.

"Yo! Did anyone mention me?" A young man in his late teens with azure blue eyes and blonde hair asked in a jolly voice while standing at the doorway.

He was the topic of Minato and Kushina's conversation, and something about him was all too familiar.

* * *

Some twists and turns, but there are far more to come. The question I'll leave you with this time is straightforward - who do you think the person Minato and Kushina were talking about was? Massive props will go to all those who guess it right. This is going to develop into something interesting in the next few chapters leading up to the big reveal of Boruto finding out about his father.

From last time a lot of you were very shocked at Shikamaru being the traitor and rightfully so. Well now you know that he was just helping Naruto all along just like **rodina2000** and **DarkestLightOfHope** had guessed. That was some good foresight.

 **Misha:** You have actually raised a good point. There is something about Sasuke's behaviour that doesn't quite add up. I actually meant to crank up his dial a little bit here and there is a reason behind this, which will come up later. For now you'll just have to wait a bit for it.

 **Trainer1232/** **DarkManta:** Darn, both of those could have been some pretty crazy plot twists as well.

Alright, that is all for today. As always let me know your thoughts on the chapter and I will see you all next time. Be well!


	25. The Second Son

**The Second Son**

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"Yo! Did anyone mention me?" A young man in his late teens asked with a smug smile on his face.

"Speak of the cat and he comes jumping." Minato joked.

Kushina though was not in a joking mood and directed her anger at the newcomer. "Get your ass over here. I'm not very happy with you right now."

"Oh boy, what did you do this time Menma?" Minato asked as a sweat drop appeared on his forehead. This was a scene all too familiar in their household.

The young man named Menma seemed perplexed. "I didn't do anything. Honest. If I was up to no good I would tell."

"Then where the heck are the eggs I told you to buy this morning!? You didn't even come back for breakfast. Why are you always insistent on messing around so much? How did my son turn out to be such a problem child? Why can't you be more like your older brother?" Kushina nagged as per usual.

"I wasn't messing around. I was with dad all morning because he called me in."

"Then where were you just now?" Kushina gave her son a suspicious look. "Are you sure you weren't trying to hit on some nurse at the hospital?"

"Dad, tell her. I was with you until just a while ago wasn't I? Ma's always on my case."

"Well, you are a bit of a troublemaker though so it's hard to argue with your mother. But honestly Kushina, Menma was with me the whole morning as I explained our plans to him and he decided to take my place. Despite his somewhat aloof nature, if anyone can face Naruto besides me, it is him. Menma is also our son after all."

Menma Namikaze, now 19 years of age was the second son of Minato and Kushina. His looks were almost entirely derived from his father, very similar to Naruto and as such he had a striking resemblance to his brother as well. In terms of his character however, he was anything like his father, an aloof and unfettered soul that loved pranking and having a good time, traits that gave Kushina an endless amount of headaches. He was barely ever serious like his father, but in those rare occasions that he was, Menma was perhaps one of the most reliable and powerful shinobi in Amegakure, known for his alias as the "Yellow Flash 2.0" – the successor to the original Yellow Flash, his father. As such Minato sought his son's aid as his replacement during this very important mission that lay ahead.

"Dad told me all about your plans and what I need to do. You can leave this to me. I'll get it done." Menma confidently reassured his mother.

Kushina was barely convinced though. "I don't think you understand the gravity of this situation Menma. You barely ever do. You're too easy going. A lot is riding on this mission, far more than you can imagine. Plus it is your brother we're talking about here that you'll have to face. Do you realise what you are up against?"

"He's the Hokage now right? So what? Big deal. I got this in the bag!"

"Do you not see what happened to your father? And that was with him facing your sister-in-law. Your brother is going to be even worse. There is a reason why he is the Hokage. That means he is acknowledged by the entire village as the strongest amongst them all. One wrong move and he could break you in half. This is no joke, especially with how you take everything so lightly."

"Well thanks for the encouragement Ma. Way to put your younger son down in favour of the older one." Menma became annoyed after hearing his brother's praise for the umpteenth time and decided to retaliate. "Besides, why the heck do you always tell me to be like this older brother of mine? I've never seen him so it's very hard for me to relate to him. In fact it's not like you've spent any time with him either. You were separated from him right after his birth, so you've had pretty much zero influence on his life. Yet you put me down, the son that you've been with ever since I was born. That makes a lot of sense doesn't it?"

"Menma, you don't understand!" Kushina was about to retaliate when Minato came in between them.

"Alright that's enough. You two have argued enough…as always." He said with a sigh. "You know, the two of you should really think about me sometimes. As much as I love you both, it can be quite problematic having two hot heads in the family. I'm the one who has to always mediate between the two of you and it can be really taxing."

"All I'm saying is that he should try to walk in Naruto's footsteps. Even though we weren't there to raise him, Naruto still worked incredibly hard to become the strongest shinobi in Konoha and even became the Hokage, one who holds a position of great responsibility. Compared to him Menma has so much more growing up to do." Kushina argued her case.

"And all I'm saying is that I'm sick and tired of hearing about this brother of mine, someone I've never even met. Just let me at him for once and I'll prove once and for all that I'm better. Even I can be very strong if I want to be, and in this instance I will take this seriously if not just to prove her wrong about this Uzumaki Naruto being so much better than me."

Sparks were now flying between mother and son and Minato was caught in between the mess, as always.

"Okay okay I get it. Both of you make good points. Now let us calm down and devise our plan." Minato replied with a sigh once more before turning to his wife. "Look Kushina, I know how you feel. Naruto has grown up to be a truly amazing person, but that doesn't mean Menma doesn't have his own redeeming qualities. Sure he can be a bit childish at times but when he wants to, he can be the very reliable as well. His dedication towards us is unquestionable. Besides that I also understand your worries about him facing Naruto, who may arguably be the strongest shinobi alive. But we've trained Menma ourselves and he is our son as well. So if there is anyone who can stand up to Naruto, it is him. I can vouch for him with all my heart and I know you can too."

"I know that." Kushina, while looking down on the ground whispered to her husband. "I know that. I know better than anyone else how powerful and reliable Menma can be if he tried. But I just worry about him all the time…he is my baby boy after all. I'm just trying to protect him."

"So the real feelings finally come out. He's not a baby anymore Kushina. You have to put your faith in him." Minato smiled at his wife's response before turning to his son. "See Menma, you really shouldn't take your mother's words as being malicious. Deep down she loves you and wishes for your best. The comparisons with your brother are not meant to be demeaning. In fact this is why I think it'll be interesting for you to meet your brother and see first hand his strength. It'll give you an appreciation of who he truly is as a shinobi. Do you really think you can get the job done exactly as I told you?"

Menma nodded to his father before turning towards his mother once more with a calm and caring look this time. "Look Ma, I get that you're always worrying about me, but I'm not a little kid anymore. I don't know much about this brother of mine, but I'm an established shinobi myself. I can take on dangerous missions and complete them successfully. I'm the son of the Yellow Flash and the Red Habanero after all, aren't I? So have some faith in me. I will definitely take responsibility and help you two out this time."

When her son showed this much determination for a change, it really was hard for Kushina to say no to him. Despite the nagging and bickering she did with Menma, he was her precious little boy. Perhaps because she couldn't be there to take care of Naruto in his childhood Kushina was a bit overprotective of her second son and also overly critical of his every action. Regardless, in the end it was all due to how much she truly cared for him.

"Well, what do you say miss Red Habanero? Has he got the clear?" Minato asked jokingly.

"First of all don't call me that, it's unflattering. Second…yes." Kushina replied with a sigh. "But I'll be keeping an eye on him."

"Yaaay we did it!" Menma celebrated by sharing a brilliant high five with his father. Those two had more of a friend-like relationship than simply a father and son one.

"Well this is great. I suppose Kushina can show you the key targets involved in this mission. You'll need a couple of items though." Minato walked over to his bedside drawers to pick up those said items.

"We'll be heading out early tomorrow morning okay? So be prepared." Kushina instructed her son to which he nodded excitedly.

In the mean time Minato returned with two of his special three pronged kunai and his signature spiral mask that gave him his Tobi identity. He handed these items to his son.

"Remember son, under no circumstance can you allow Naruto to see your true identity. Do everything in your power to keep yourself hidden under the disguise of this mask and the alias of Tobi. This is an absolute must. We're supposed to be the bad guys here."

Menma took the mask and examined it curiously, putting it on to make sure it fit. There was this odd sense of power he felt while assuming this alias and for the very first time in his life he would deliberately be taking the role of the villain.

"I get the mask but what's up with the kunai?" Menma asked. "It's not like I need them."

"These are a bit special since they have seals connecting to ones your mother placed on Boruto a while back. This will allow you to directly teleport near Boruto's location no matter where he is as long as you can use my space-time teleportation technique. It's a way we set up to track the boy and teleport to him whenever necessary. However do keep in mind that it can be quite draining to teleport to him the further he is away from you. So it's ideal if you were reasonably close to his location in the first place before making the jump to him."

"Alright sounds like we've got a plan in our hands. Our meeting's over for now right?" Menma asked his parents to which they both nodded. "In that case I'm out to have fun until then!"

Before either of them could even utter a word, there was a yellow flash and Menma was gone like the wind.

"I worry about this Minato." Kushina said with a sigh.

"It'll be fine. He's strong. For now you should go and rest up as well. Tomorrow will be eventful."

Thus Kushina shared goodbyes and went home to prepare for the day to come.

 **The next morning…**

Kushina and Menma had travelled all the way to the village where Hinata and Boruto resided and were currently watching Hinata working at her bakery from afar while transformed as your average civilians so as to not give away their identities.

"So you see that's Naruto's wife, which makes her your sister-in-law." Kushina explained.

Menma's eyes almost popped out of his sockets at first sight of Hinata. "HOLY HOT MAMA! That's my brother's wife?! That lucky little git! She is smokin' hot!"

Kushina frowned at the comment. "What the heck are you saying about someone else's wife?"

"I mean just look at her though. She is lookin' mighty fine! Besides are they even married anymore? I mean if I remember correct she left him like 8 years ago. I think she's probably open season. Besides I just wanna have a chat, that's all."

"Wait what? No Menma stop!?" Before she could even finish, Menma was gone in the blink of an eye.

Menma arrived at the front of the bakery with an odd swagger in his steps and confidently greeted Hinata with an overzealous "HIII!", one that exceeded the bounds of what could be considered normal.

However Hinata did not pay much heed to any ulterior that may have been behind that greeting and welcomed the customer in her usual graceful self. "Hello, nice to meet you. What can I get you today?"

" _Oh my goodness, not only does she look like an angel but her voice is like one too!"_ Menma nearly melted into the ground just from being greeted by Hinata, but somehow managed to compose himself to speak once more.

"I uh had a question. Was your dad a baker? Cuz you have some nice buns!" He blurted out in the heat of the moment.

There was a few seconds of silence as Menma reconsidered his choice of compliment and realised it may not have quite worked out. In fact it was downright terrible.

"No my father was not a baker, far from it actually. But I'm glad that you like the buns I've made. They are my original recipe, so I can definitely vouch for their taste. Would you like to get some?" Hinata asked ever so politely, completely missing what Menma was actually referring to.

"I see…so you have tasty buns…Guhehe! I'll have two of them if you wouldn't mind." Menma right now had a borderline creepy smile on his face that would have repulsed most women, but despite this Hinata with her angel-like grace served her customer with a smile of her own, one that was far more heart-warming as opposed to shiver inducing.

"Here you go, I hope you enjoy." Hinata handed the two freshly baked buns to her customer and stored the money she received in the cash register. "Anything else I can get for you today?"

"Actually yes. I was looking for a type of food that contains a particular nutrient that my doctor says I'm in serious need of. And I think you may have it."

Hinata was a little perplexed at the request since not many people asked her about the nutritional value of her baked products. But perhaps this person needed to do so to maintain good health, as such Hinata decided to help out however she could. "Sure, I can do my best to help as far as I'm able."

"You see my doctor said that I'm apparently lacking in Vitamin U right now. Do you think I could perhaps have something with Vitamin U?"

Hinata had a very confused look on her face given that she had never heard of such a type of Vitamin. "I'm sorry. I don't think any of my baked products have Vitamin U. In fact, I don't even think there is such a thing as Vitamin U. Are you sure you're not getting it mixed up with something else?"

Menma's initial approach failed miserably but he wasn't about to give up just yet. As such he tried a second time. "Actually, now that I look at you, I think you're lacking in a particular type of nutrient as well. Have you been to the doctor lately because I think you're in severe need of Vitamin Me."

Menma was almost certain that this time his one liner would be a guaranteed hit. He was awfully proud of himself for coming up with it. But to his dismay Hinata remained 100% oblivious.

She smiled wryly, feeling a bit uncomfortable but still not realising the ulterior meaning behind Menma's words. "I don't think there is such a thing as Vitamin Me either. And I'm in pretty good health as far as I'm aware."

Her words left Menma in shock. He was sure Hinata would have picked up on the hints he was throwing her way by now. But her responsiveness was on par with a tree trunk. This level of obliviousness was downright criminal he thought.

Little did Menma know that he wasn't the first person to have been shot down by Hinata's pure unawareness towards men approaching her with romantic interest, to the point where she was infamously known amongst her admirers in the village as the "Unapproachable Beauty". When Hinata first moved into the village, given that she appeared single despite having a son, there were many a men who tried to approach her in order to start something given her exceptional looks and disposition. But Hinata always inadvertently shot them down with her pure obliviousness and a gentle smile, breaking every one of their hearts. It didn't matter how direct they were, she somehow never got the message and didn't considered any of them as a potential suitor.

This was all because when it came to romance Hinata's brain worked in a very peculiar way. She separated out all the men in the world into two groups. On one side there was Naruto, whose words and actions she loved and viewed in a romantic light. On the other side there were the rest of the men in the world, who were just people with nothing attractive about them, no matter how good they looked or how nice they were to her. Some might consider this a mental illness but when it came to matters of romance, Hinata's mind was only capable of conceiving of Naruto and Naruto alone. That was just how she was.

Menma, realising that his roundabout words were not working decided to go all in at this point. "Would you like me to help you put a bun in your ove-"

Before he could finish, there was a swift chop to his neck that nearly left him unconsciousness.

"Ahahaha, I hope my idiot son hasn't been causing you too much trouble. You see I dropped him on his head as a kid which ended up giving him permanent brain damage. So I apologise for any inconvenience he may have caused you. I'll be taking him with me now." Kushina explained to her daughter-in-law in her disguised form with a wry smile.

Menma cringed at the explanation but decided not to say a word since his mother would kill him later otherwise.

"Ah I see, now it all makes sense!" Hinata's innocent reply was enough to shatter the young man's heart into a million pieces. "I'm really sorry to hear that. I hope he can recover somehow."

Kushina wasted no time and dragged her son away by the collar into some dark alleyway and was now stomping away at him with full force in her infamous Red Habanero mode. "YOU IDIOT, IDIOT! YOU STUPID IDIOT! What do you think you're doing!? Even as a joke that's taking it too far. What if she discovered our disguise? Did you want to blow our plans even before they could get started?"

"Ouch ouch ouch mama that hurts! This is child abuse! I was only joking! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Menma cried out in pain but the thrashing did not stop.

"I need to beat some sense into a lecherous perv like you. Now repent!"

"It's not fair." Menma replied in a rather melancholic tone, one that surprised his mother and stopped her offense. "It's not fair that this brother of mine had such a kind and good looking wife and he just ditched her. If I were in his place I would never let her go, no matter what. Yet women avoid me with a ten foot pole. What did I do wrong?"

For once Kushina felt sorry for her son and decided to show more of her caring side. "Your brother didn't ditch her or just let her go. It was complicated, that's why we're doing everything we're doing right now to rectify matters. As for you Menma, the reason why women dislike you is because you're always acting like a pest. Women like men who are responsible and act gallantly, not someone who always appears so desperate. I mean you've got your father's looks and pretty high status within the Uzumaki clan, so none of that is an issue. If you only acted serious more often which I know you're capable of, I think you could be a splendid man."

Menma turned towards his mother with hopeful eyes. "You really think so?"

"I don't think so. I know so."

"In that case I'll go talk to her seriously this time!"

"No you idiot, STOP IT!"

Menma was about to make a dash towards the bakery as Kushina reached out for her son's collar once more in order to stop him. At that moment however a young boy with a rather distinctive look passed by the main road connecting to the alleyway. He only peeked in once to find out the cause of the ongoing commotion but didn't stop since he didn't want to get involved. Within a moment he was gone.

"Was that who I think he was?" Menma asked his mother.

"Yes he's the one. He's Boruto, your nephew and your target, the crux of our plan. Remember him carefully."

"I see." Menma replied, yet there was an odd sense of weight to his voice right now unlike everything he had said so far. It almost felt like he was a different person.

"Can we really rely on you to get this done properly?"

"Don't worry, consider it done." Menma reassured his mother in a tone that made him sound like the most reliable person in the world. "In any case, our job here is done. Let's get of here. I've some preparations to make."

Thus both mother and son left the village with haste.

 **The weekend – Saturday morning, day before Boruto's birthday…**

The weekend was finally here and Boruto's birthday was just one day away. The young boy was ecstatic given that his mother had planned out a small birthday party at their house where he invited all of his close friends from school. It was shaping out to be a day of fun. But if that wasn't enough his master would be around as well. Right now he headed towards his master's mansion in order to continue with his usual training. It didn't take long before he was entering the front garden to the mansion but to his surprise he found the older blonde haired man standing at the front door dressed up to go out.

"Whoa, what are you doing up this early in the morning?" Boruto asked out of surprise.

"Actually I have something cool planned out for the two of us today and I didn't want to waste any time. Think of it like an early birthday surprise and it'll allow us to put all your training thus far to the test."

Now Naruto had his son's interest.

"Okay, what is it?" The young boy questioned excitedly.

"I've got a ninja mission for you."

Boruto's eyes widened almost to the point of popping out of his eye sockets. He was shocked beyond his imagination. "A mission!? AN HONEST TO GOODNESS REAL NINJA MISSION!?"

"Yup, a ninja mission in a village that's actually not too far from here. We received a request for it recently but since the village that requested it was so far away I couldn't send anyone to it. Plus it's only a D rank mission, so it's not exactly the highest on our priority list. But if you'd like, you can try and see if you can complete it. Of course I'll help if necessary but since you're not part of the active roster of ninja and I'm the Hokage, so I'm technically not supposed to be going on any missions, let alone D ranked missions, neither of us will be getting credit for completing the mission. Regardless, I think it'd be a good learning experience for you. What do you say? You up for it even though it's a D ranked mission?"

"Up for it? OF COURSE I'M UP FOR IT! LET'S GOOOOO!" Boruto pulled Naruto along with all the force in the world even though he didn't even know where they were supposed to be going. That's how excited he was. "I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE WHAT THE MISSION IS!"

 **About an hour later…**

"So this is the mission…" Boruto's excitement had deflated into nothingness after arriving at the village in question and finding out the actual objective of the mission. "Are you firkin kidding me? I have to catch some stupid cat? And that's supposed to put my ninja skills to the test?"

"I did say that it was a D ranked mission. These low rank missions are generally odd jobs that you have to do for a client. In this particular case it seems that the village leader's favourite cat has escaped and none of the villagers have been able to capture it. This guy is apparently very fast and crafty, so they asked for a ninja to help catch it. And that's where you come in." Naruto and Boruto currently stood in a park and surveyed their target, a black cat that was sitting on top of a slide licking its paws.

"I'm a ninja. I should be saving the world or something, not catching some guy's stupid cat."

"Well, a ninja does what his mission asks him to do. You're the one who accepted it, so you might as well get it done."

"Fine whatever. Let's do this and get out of here." Boruto groaned in annoyance and ran after the cat, who sprang into action instantly and dashed out of the park. This would lead to a massive goose chase around the village.

Naruto sat down on a bench as he saw his son run out of the park. He decided to let him do the job by himself. Even though it may be as simple a task as catching a cat, it would still be a learning experience for him.

Before long though, there was someone who approached him from behind.

"Naruto-kun, may I take a seat beside you?" Houka requested. She was currently in her original form and looked nearly identical to Hinata, apart from her signature reddish-orange hair. Coming into the village in her beast form would raise quite the chaos.

"Of course, feel free." Naruto moved slightly, allowing for his wife's clone to sit beside him. "It's been a while, or so I would say if not for you following me and Boruto to the festival last time and now to this village here. You know you could have just joined us on the trips. I'm sure Boruto would get used to your forms."

"No, that's not it. I didn't want to get in between father and son. I thought it'd be better if you spent time alone with him as it would allow the two of you to get to know each other better. Besides, I was just asked by the princess to keep an eye out on Boruto."

"I see, so what do you think? Isn't it great? Our son is on his first mission as a ninja. He's definitely grown hasn't he?" Naruto asked while feeling proud as a father.

"Even though the mission requires for him to catch a cat?" Houka giggled at the irony. "You complained to the Hokage about the D ranked missions as well."

"Yeah I remember we had to do some silly stuff when we first got started. These D-ranked missions are hardly becoming of a shinobi. Perhaps I should take a long hard look at them and make some changes as the Hokage." Naruto grimaced. "So, what brings you here right now? Judging from your demeanour it doesn't seem like you're here to have some idle chit-chat with me. Is there something on your mind?"

"I wish to inform you of something rather important. Something that I feel that you should know Naruto-kun." Houka's expression now took a much more serious turn. "Last weekend, the day before you took Boruto to the festival, the princess and Boruto were attacked by a man named Tobi. His intentions were to kidnap Boruto and an all out battle broke out between the princess and that man."

"WHAT!?" Naruto shouted as he stood up from the bench in shock and horror. "Is everything okay!? How come Boruto didn't mention any of this to me!?"

"He doesn't know about the events since the princess knocked him unconscious before the altercation took place. Everything is fine for now. The princess, I and Yuki were able to push him back and secure a victory, but that man managed to escape, vowing to be back for Boruto once more."

"Can you fill me in on the details?" Naruto requested urgently.

As such Houka told him about the events that took place on the day Hinata left Konoha and how Tobi had saved her from the masked man. Now that same Tobi was back and his true motives behind saving Hinata back then was to not allow Boruto to be killed so that the young boy could eventually be used as some sort of a weapon. It was complicated but Houka went over as much of the details she could in the time they had in order to fill Naruto in on the events that led to the present.

"How did all of this insanity unfold without me even knowing? And here I thought I had finally captured the masked perpetrator who attacked Hinata from all those years ago. Yet here we have another enemy in whoever this Tobi is. Things just keep getting more and more complicated."

"Wait did you just say that you caught whoever it was that attacked us all those years ago?" Houka asked out of surprise. "Who was he?"

"It was Danzo, or so we strongly believe. He's currently under interrogation but refuses to speak. We'll get all the information out of him sooner or later though. That being said this Tobi guy seems like he could be an even bigger threat. I need to act fast. I have to sort out this mess between myself and Hinata asap so that I can protect all of you properly. I did make a promise after all."

"It's okay Naruto-kun. You need not worry. I believe that you will keep your promise." Houka gently caressed Naruto's face in order to relieve some of his tension. "In any case, it seems Boruto is on his way back. I think I should be going. I'll leave him in your care for now."

Naruto nodded and as suddenly as she appeared, Houka was gone once more. Soon after Boruto came back to Naruto with a black cat in hand, his clothes dirty from having chased it around the whole village.

"You did it! You completed your first mission as a ninja. CONGRATS!" Naruto clapped his hands in celebration of his student's grand achievement.

"For some reason I don't feel as accomplished I thought I would feel after my first mission." Boruto replied in an emotionless tone.

"That's not true. We all have to start at the bottom and rise up from there. Think of this as your very first step and you've performed amazingly. You've made me proud as your master _…and your father._ " Naruto complimented his son, leaving out the last part in his mind. "In any case, let's go hand this little beast over to its rightful owner and head back home."

Thus both father and son met up with the village leader and returned his cat to him before leaving the village. On their way back Boruto was sitting on top of Naruto's shoulders as usual while the veteran ninja jumped from tree to tree at an incredible speed until they reached an open prairie. Naruto decided to take a quick break in order to take in the view of the calm open grassy prairie and enjoy the fresh air.

"Boruto do you think you could visit my house at some point tomorrow? I have a surprise for your birthday."

"Hmmm…Kaa-chan is holding a birthday party in the morning for me with all my friends. So I should be able to drop by in the evening for a little bit if I requested her. I can't stay for too long though as I'm not allowed to be out by myself after dark."

"That's fine. Even if you can come for an hour or two, that'll be great."

"What's the surprise?" Boruto was now curious.

"Well if I told you what it is, it wouldn't really be a surprise now would it?"

"I guess you're right. Well I can't wait to find out."

"I can't wait to show you either."

While father and son were having their usual small talk, Naruto suddenly felt a powerful presence approach them at an unbelievable speed. With his inhuman reflexes Naruto shrugged Boruto off his shoulders, making sure he landed safely and blocked the enemy's kunai with his own, sending it flying into the sky.

A hooded man wearing an orange spiralling mask landed a little distance away from Naruto as he caught the special three pronged kunai that Naruto had deflected away.

Thus it was the first confrontation between Naruto and Tobi.

* * *

We're very close to Boruto finding out about who Naruto truly is. In fact we're just one chapter away, after the next one. My plans are to release that chapter where Boruto finds out about his father on the 27th of this month, which will in fact be the anniversary of this story. It has almost been a year since I started writing this and what a journey it has been so far.

From last time **rodina2000, Guest 8, Gold Testament, NarHina, tom80, Reading Pixie, Shlavecod, Trainer1232, Deadly-DeathStar, Meirai Kurasa, Erosdeath** all guessed correctly that the blonde haired/blue eyed man was Naruto's younger brother and some of you even got his name. That was a lot of fun for me to see. I would love to know what you thought about him. I did intend for his interaction with Hinata to be a bit cringey but hopefully funny. I wanted to portray him in a somewhat lighthearted role to begin with. Of course things will get serious with him in the next chapter and he'll have an important role to play in the story.

That is all I have for today. Let me know your thoughts as always and I will see you all next time.


	26. The True Successor

**The True Successor**

* * *

Naruto and Tobi stood face to face for the very first time.

"WIND RELEASE: AIR BULLET!" Tobi wasted no time and let loose a highly compressed air bullet towards Naruto, but with his swiftness Naruto jumped up into the air just in time to avoid the attack and now prepared his own.

"WIND RELEASE: BARRAGE AIR PALMS!" Naruto responded by thrusting his palms multiple times, sending numerous bursts of air towards Tobi at once. This was in fact one of Hinata's signature techniques that Naruto had adopted into his own during their time as a team, although he used his wind style affinity to perform the technique as opposed to the Hyuga's traditional ways.

The barrage of air palms normally meant the attack covered a wide area and was difficult to dodge, but Tobi tossed one of his kunai behind him and instantly teleported out of the area of effect with a yellow flash, landing far away. It was at this point that Naruto took notice of the two special kunai in Tobi's hands and the signature yellow flash. They were all too familiar to him.

"Those Kunai…that technique…they belonged to my dad? WHO ARE YOU!?" Naruto was shocked to say the least.

"I am your shadow…the shadow of the fourth Hokage." Tobi said in a very grim tone which almost instantly turned into a jolly and cheerful one the next moment. "But you can call me Tobi, the masked menace who the kids are scared of at night!"

Tobi raised his hands next to his face and squirmed his fingers around to replicate the classic hand motion of a monster when it's chasing its victim. Unfortunately he looked more comical than scary, which wasn't his intention. Before he could say anything more though, several large balls of flame rained down on to Tobi's position like artillery strikes.

"Am I hallucinating or is it raining fire right now?" The masked perpetrator asked in awe as he teleported away from the attacks once again.

A reddish-orange ethereal Leopard landed next to Naruto, arriving to the scene as fast as she could. "That's him! That's Tobi, the one I told you about! Be careful, he's incredibly dangerous!"

"Are you serious!?" Naruto looked from Houka to Tobi and finally comprehended who it was he was truly facing right now. This was the man who allegedly tried to kidnap Boruto not too long ago and presumably he was here to attempt it again. There was no way he could let him walk away after that. "You're here for Boruto aren't you?"

"Eh? How did you know?" Tobi seemed genuinely surprised.

"Don't play dumb. We fought the last time. You're not going to get your hands on the child, not now, not ever." Houka said in an uncharacteristically aggressive tone. She was in full on defensive mode for Boruto.

Menma, the one behind Tobi's mask right now realised that his father must have faced Houka when he fought Hinata as Tobi before. Thus he decided to play along. "Well I kind of failed last time but I did say I'd be back. So here I am. This time I'll get the boy for sure. Hi Boruto, Tobi is here for you and he's got lots of candy!"

Boruto thus far was simply watching in awe at all the unbelievable things that were happening in front of him, from the collision between two real shinobi and the ethereal Leopard looking beast that suddenly appeared next to his master. It was too much to take in, but Tobi calling his name finally snapped him out of his trance and he felt annoyed that the masked man was treating him like a dumb little kid. "Are you kidding me? Candy? I'm not gonna fall for the oldest trick in the book you creep!"

"Boruto, stay back and stay down!" Naruto ordered his son as he got in between Tobi's line of sight to the young boy, not too amused by Tobi's carefree nature. "If you think I'm going to let you put a finger on the boy then you're delusional. In fact I'm gonna make your pay for your transgressions right now."

Even though Naruto was being deadly serious, Tobi had other enquiries in mind.

"Actually, leaving all that complicated stuff aside for a second, I had a question for you Hokage. Is that your pet?" He asked pointing curiously at Houka. "I want a talking, fire-breathing, energy cat of my own. Where can I get one?"

"I'm not his pet! I'm his wi…I mean…I'M NOT HIS PET!" Houka emphasized, clearly flustered. "Also I'm not a cat. I'm a Leopard!"

"That means you're a talking, fire breathing big energy cat. That's far out man! Now I want you even more kitty."

"AS I TOLD YOU JUST NOW, I'M A LEOPARD, NOT A CAT!" Houka yelled back in annoyance this time, surprising even Naruto, who always knew her to have inherited Hinata's gentle and soft-spoken side. Clearly Tobi was getting under her skin.

"Oh snap, kitty's angry at me. Don't worry little kitty, I mean big kitty. Come here. I've got a ball of yarn for you. I heard cats really like playing with these."

Before Tobi could finish, he found a giant ball of flame headed straight at him courtesy of Houka, which he barely managed to backflip over.

"Whoa, that was super dangerous! Although it's really cool that you can breathe fire and stuff, you can't be doing that at home you know. You almost made barbeque out of Tobi. Wait…why does it smell like something's burning?" Tobi turned around only to find the tail end of his cloak in flames.

"BWAAAAAAAAAA! MY CLOAK'S ON FIRE! MY CLOAK'S ON FIRE! HELP, SOMEBODY CALL THE FIRE BRIGADE! HEEEEEEEEELP!" Tobi screamed in fear as he ran in circles around where he was previously standing. "Oh wait, what was the protocol again for fire emergencies? I remember! Stop, drop and roll! Stop, drop and roll!"

Tobi heeded his own advice and started rolling around on the ground like a mad man and finally managed to put out the flames.

"That was close. My beautiful cloak was almost lost in that little scuffle. You're gonna pay for that! Here, take this!" Tobi in his fit of rage over his favourite half burnt cloak took out a third kunai with a paper bomb wrapped around it and threw it at his enemies.

Naruto and Houka shared a knowing glance as though they could read each other's minds and exhaled intense bursts of wind and fire respectively at their enemy. "COMBINED NINJA ART: GREAT FANNED FLAMES!"

Naruto's wind intensified Houka's flame and made it travel towards their target at a blistering speed, engulfing everything in its path. Needless to say the kunai was no longer in existence and Tobi was high up in the sky, having teleported up there for safety.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO?" He complained as he landed back on the ground, which had been scorched to bits. "I just threw a flippin kunai at you and you try to turn me into fried chicken? Talk about overkill."

"Enough of your games!" Both Naruto and Houka warned in unison. They were both now at their wits end with Tobi's antics.

"Let's end this together, just like old times." Houka asked while looking at Naruto.

"Wait, really? You mean you want to join with me?" Naruto was surprised to hear the proposition. Even though Houka was almost always averse to fighting, but in the rare occasions that she combined her powers with Naruto, the two of them were an unstoppable force.

"Indeed. This time we cannot afford to hold back or take a chance. We have to end this threat for Boruto's sake. That is why I want you to become one with me." Houka requested in the most literal sense.

Naruto nodded and took a deep breath, getting ready to join together with Houka. He held his right hand over her head and with the other he lifted his shirt to expose a seal on his midsection, one that he had especially created for this very purpose many years ago.

"Uzumaki Clan's Secret Technique!" Naruto opened up the seal in his stomach with his left hand, and with one tap of his right hand on Houka, her entire body dematerialised and was instantly absorbed into Naruto through the open seal. Once her essence was completely inside him he closed the seal once more, completing their metamorphosis process.

However, not having done this for years, Naruto was instantly overwhelmed by the new presence within his body and he dropped on to his knees feeling nauseous.

" _Naruto-kun, we're out of sync! You must relax and accept me within you, or your body will get burned by my essence!"_ Houka warned directly into his mind, finding it difficult to find a stable place within him.

"I'm trying. I can feel you inside me…your very essence...it's so hot!" Naruto felt like a fire was burning up his body from the inside and he tried to suppress it.

" _Naruto-kun, remember how we joined together in the past. Don't try to suppress that feeling. Trust me and give yourself in to that burning sensation. ALLOW ME TO CONSUME YOU!"_ Houka's voice rang through Naruto's mind and he remembered the trust that was required for the two of them to connect together. Thus he closed his eyes and stopped fighting against that burning sensation within him, instead opting to let it all go and surrender himself to it. Instantly his mind and body was once again at peace and the intense heat within him turned into what felt like a gentle warm embrace. This feeling of tranquillity, after many years Naruto once again recognised it as being a part of Hinata.

"INITIATING TAILED BEAST MODE!" Naruto stood to his feet and opened his eyes wide. His entire body became covered in a reddish-orange cloak that resembled that of a Leopard and he felt more powerful than ever.

This was Naruto and Hinata's greatest achievement as a team, their strongest form. Through many years of training together, the two had come to understand and trust one another to the utmost level. Using the capabilities granted by their Uzumaki and Hyuga lineage, Naruto was able to seal Hinata's special clones, an essence of her powers within himself, taking up their forms in the process and greatly enhancing his own abilities. They named this combined form between Naruto and Hinata's counterparts the _Tailed Beast Mode_ given that Naruto took on many of Hinata's beast like properties…and because he also now had a tail thanks to her. For whatever reason he always liked the tail part of his transformation the most and as such decided to call it the "Tailed" Beast Mode and not just Beast Mode. Regardless, in this combined form, Naruto and Hinata truly were an unstoppable force.

" _It was been so many years since we last joined together like this. The feeling of being within you is…truly special."_ Houka spoke directly to Naruto inside his mind, a voice that only he could hear.

"Indeed, it feels great to have you inside me as well." Naruto replied to her. His voice however could be heard by everyone else.

"I can feel you inside me…it feels great to have you inside me…" Tobi repeated Naruto's words with a tinge of disgust in his tone. "I don't know what kind of weird ass plays you're in to but I don't ever want to hear another man say these things out in public ever again. Ugh, disgusting. For goodness sake there's a little kid standing right there behind you. At least think about him before subjecting others to this kind of torture!"

Boruto was too busy appreciating his master's crazy new form to even pay attention to anything Tobi was saying. Not that he would understand what it was Tobi was inferring.

Naruto on the other hand was clearly flustered. "I didn't mean it that way you idiot! Get your mind out of the gutter!"

" _How could you Naruto-kun!? Boruto's right there behind us! You're a terrible father!"_

"Seriously? You're gonna turn against me as well? How long have we been doing this exactly? You know I didn't mean anything weird by what I said."

" _Well then don't say anything that can be easily misconstrued like that."_

While Naruto and Houka got into their little argument which looked more like Naruto arguing with himself, Tobi saw an opening and rushed right at him to attack. But before he could get even reasonably close, with enhanced beast-like reflexes Naruto swung one of his claw-cloaked arms and sent a powerful gust of super-heated wind towards Tobi that hit the masked man like a freight train and sent him careening backwards, flipping along the ground like a rag doll before he finally crashed into a tree with immense force, toppling it over in the process.

"Hmmm…seems like I've still got the hang of this." Naruto appreciated his own powers before turning towards the wreckage where his enemy currently lay with a menacing look. "Alright, I've had enough of your games. It's time we finally put an end to this."

Tobi slowly removed the debris covering his body and got up groggily. "Oh my head. It's still ringing from that collision. Ouch, it burns as well. Goodness me man, do you have any concept of holding back?"

"I've been holding back thus far. But I won't be holding back anymore."

"So you think you're hot stuff huh? Well how about I cool you down a bit with this? WATER RELEASE: WATER BULLET!"

Naruto saw the bullet coming towards him from across the battlefield and stood his ground in anticipation.

" _Legends say that there was nothing that the first Hokage's fire release techniques could not burn through. This may not necessarily be on par with his, but I'll be borrowing a page out of his books using Hinata's fire style affinity."_ Naruto thought to himself whileinhaling as much air as his lungs could possibly contain. "FIRE RELEASE: ULTRA GREAT FIRE ANNIHILATION!"

Naruto took one of Hinata's most powerful fire style techniques and powered it up even further using his own wind style affinity, resulting in a jutsu that matched even Madara's original. He breathed out what could only be considered a sea of flames that engulfed everything in sight and spread forward like wildfire. Tobi's water bullet evaporated within a moment as it came in contact with the raging flames. There was no escaping such a wide area of effect.

Knowing this Tobi held one of his space-time kunai in front of him and opened up a large space-time portal in front of him, which absorbed all the flames directed his way. He then threw his other kunai right above where Naruto stood and opened the other end of the portal over him, redirecting Naruto's attack right back at him and raining down a shower of flames on top of him. Even though Naruto saw his attack being redirected he didn't bother moving and allowed the flames to engulf him completely.

Boruto was watching thus far with sheer awe but seeing his master get completely bathed in fire scared him to his very core. In his young mind no matter how strong a person was, there was no way anyone could survive such an ordeal. As the dreadful thought of not being able to see his master ever again crossed his mind, to his utter shock and awe he saw his master's silhouette within the flames. As the flames died down Boruto was greatly relieved to see his master still standing in place, not a scratch on his body. Truly he surpassed all of the young boy's imaginations and was the epitome of badass.

Tobi on the other hand was not so impressed. "WHAT!? I reflected back at you the strongest fire style attack I've ever seen and you're just standing there like nothing even happened. What the heck is this, plot armour? I call hax!"

"No, I'm just immune to all fire style techniques in this form. More specifically, it's my partner here who's immune and when I'm joined together with her I can't be hurt by any kind of fire at all." Naruto explained.

" _Actually that's not quite true. I'm not immune to all fire style techniques. That man over there, Tobi, used some sort of black flames in our last fight that did serious damage to me. Not even I had expected that."_

" _Wow are you serious? A flame that can hurt even you? I didn't think that was possible."_

"Alright you know what, it seems as though fighting you at long range is a futile effort. So I'll just get in up close and personal to defeat you in close quarters combat." Tobi got ready to engage in hand to hand combat and threw one of his kunai towards Naruto in order to teleport to him.

"Bring it on!" Rather than preparing to engage, Naruto simply folded his arms across his chest and stood still with a smirk on his face.

" _Activating wisps."_ Upon Houka's command, ten small blue wisps materialised and started floating around Naruto's body in a circular formation.

As soon as Tobi teleported in close to Naruto, one of those wisps exploded into an eruption of flames, sending Tobi flying backwards from the blast, while Naruto remained unphased due to his current immunity to fire.

"What are those, some kind of defence mechanism that explode based on proximity?" Tobi scrambled to stand up once more and put out the flames on his clothes. At that moment Tobi felt someone right above him. He looked up only to find Naruto dropping down from overhead with two very destructive looking black orbs in his hands.

"MINI TAILED BEAST BALLS!" Naruto shoved both orbs right where Tobi stood, causing a massive explosion on that spot that left a huge crater.

Tobi barely managed to back dash away but once again was caught by force emanating from the blast, which sent him face first into the ground. At this point his body was just being thrown around like a ragdoll by Naruto's offense.

Naruto jumped up from within the crater and landed outside, shrugging off some of the after effects of the force on his own body even though his tailed beast cloak protected him from most of it.

" _It still surprises me to this day how you can so nonchalantly form multiple orbs at once and do so without breaking a sweat. Even though the princess was the one who created the technique, I have to put in a lot of effort creating even one at a time. Yet you make it look so easy. You really are something else Naruto-kun."_ Houka couldn't help but praise her host.

"Well what can I say, perks of being an Uzumaki I suppose." Naruto replied to Houka before once again turning towards Tobi, who was now currently lying on the ground. "That aside, are you sure he is the one you fought before? So far he seems like a joke. His only redeeming quality is his ability to perform some of my father's teleportation techniques which I'm not sure how he learned. But even then he's just a second rate knock off of my father. I don't see how this man could have given Hinata any kind of trouble or have seriously intended to capture Boruto."

" _I don't know what is going on but he was definitely far more powerful during our last encounter. Something about him seems off this time around. I just don't feel any malice from him like I did last time."_

"That man does not seem like he is fighting for a cause. There is no killer instinct within him. I hate to sound cocky, but someone like him cannot stand up to a Kage. That is a fact. He is far too weak."

Those words from Naruto, they finally struck a chord within Menma. He was reminded of all the times he was compared to his older brother and considered to be the weaker of the two. He hated that feeling, and most importantly, he was done living in the shadow of Naruto.

Thus he stood up and completely shed his carefree nature. The aura around him turned into a very heavy and omnious one, putting Naruto on edge. Tobi realigned his mask on his face which now had several cracks on it and was nearly falling apart. His sights were set on Naruto.

"Weak…a joke…lacking killer instinct…a second rate knock off of the Yellow Flash. You will come to regret those words Hokage." Tobi replied in a dark tone, one that made him seem like a completely different person than who he previously was as he threw aside the space-time kunai he was holding in his hand. "I do not need this, for I have far surpassed the Yellow Flash long ago. Therefore, allow me to show you…true power."

In the blink of an eye Tobi was right in Naruto's face without the use of any technique or the space-time kunai. One of the wisps around Naruto exploded due to his enemy's close proximity, but Tobi had long teleported away before the explosion even took place. He once again teleported to Naruto, this time from behind and initiated another explosion from one of the wisps protecting him, teleporting away before it could affect Tobi in any way. He repeated this process, approaching Naruto haphazardly from all directions and setting off a chain of explosions before finally all the wisps protecting Naruto were completely gone and he was left without any defence mechanism.

Tobi now started running in circles around Naruto at a blisteringly fast pace, teleporting from point to point around him effortlessly, leaving afterimages of himself in an effort to confound his enemy. During this entire time Naruto tried to keep track Tobi's movements, but the masked man's movements were so fast that his eyes could not keep up with him.

" _Naruto-kun, the wisps are gone and they won't be back up for a while. You have to be careful!"_ Houka warned from within him.

"W-What is going on? How can you teleport around so freely without the use of the space-time kunai?" Naruto asked as he desperately attempted to locate Tobi's position as he moved all around him, but to no avail.

"Did I not tell you earlier? I have far surpassed the Yellow Flash in my abilities. I can teleport between short distances freely without the need for any kunai or seals. I call this "blinking". Perhaps I should demonstrate what the fastest shinobi in existence is truly capable of." Tobi blinked right in front of Naruto and delivered a gut wrenching punch square in his abdomen, causing the Hokage to hunch over from the impact before he teleported out of reach once more. Tobi then re-appeared from the side and landed another devastating blow. He kept repeating the process, pummelling Naruto from every which direction while blinking in and out of combat. Menma's unparalleled speed along with his relentless offense made for a truly deadly combination.

Naruto remained calm even under attack and kept trying to read Tobi's movements, still to no avail.

"Time for me to break something." Tobi got into Naruto's face this time, planting his elbow right into his nose with full force, breaking and dislocating it completely.

A fountain of blood poured out of Naruto's nose as he did his best to hold in the pain.

" _NARUTO-KUN NOOOOO!"_ Houka cried out from within him, feeling helpless as Naruto was being pulverised from all directions.

" _I'm fine. Leave this to me."_ Naruto gave a curt reply as he grabbed a hold of his dislocated nose and snapped it back into place. He then closed his eyes and concentrated as Tobi continued his assault on him. He had figured something out.

Naruto kept waiting patiently while enduring the pain and biding his time. Through sheer concentration Naruto sharpened his senses to their absolute limits. And then he felt it – Tobi approaching him head on once again. It was at that point Naruto opened his eyes wide and grabbed Tobi's punch with one hand while with the other he created a spiralling blue sphere.

"Eat this – RASENGAN!" He shoved the sphere right into Tobi, sending him back from where he came.

Tobi endured the full brunt of the hit and still remained standing. He saw one of his space-time kunai lying next to him on the ground and took the opportunity to kick it right towards his opponent.

Naruto ducked to avoid the kunai but at that moment Tobi teleported right above him.

"I'll show you the original RASENGAN!" Tobi created a rasengan of his own and slammed it right into Naruto's back and flattening his body on to the ground. "Heheh! Got you."

However, Tobi's little moment of celebration abruptly came to a halt as he saw Naruto's body start glowing and he realised that this was all a trap. "OH CRAP!"

"CLONE JUTSU: SUPER EXPLOSION!" Naruto used one of the techniques taught to him by Itachi to blow up the clone he had placed earlier in his spot while Tobi was recovering from his Rasengan.

The sudden explosion sent Tobi flying, but he managed to recover mid-air and landed on the ground, the entire scuffle angering him even further. He didn't have much time to regroup though as a screeching sound assaulted his eardrums. He looked up only to find Naruto holding some variant of a Rasengan that he had never seen before, one that resembled the shape of a shuriken.

"I don't know how you managed to learn the Rasengan, but calling yours the original is a disgrace to my father, the one who created the technique. Right now, I, his scion will show you the successor to the Rasengan itself. You're far too dangerous for me to simply ignore any longer." Naruto warned Tobi with his Rasenshuriken at hand.

Menma didn't need to get hit with Naruto's technique to know how powerful it was and as such wasted no time in creating his own variant of the Rasengan as well – the Rasenring, a purple orb with white rings orbiting around it. The technique resembled the shape of a planet with rings. "You're not the only one who has created a successor to the Rasengan. Right here, right now, let us find out who amongst us has the true successor to the Rasengan!"

The two brothers squared off with the essence of the position of their father's true inheritor at stake. And neither would back down.

"RASENSHURIKEN!"

"RASENRING!"

They both hurled their techniques at each other and as the two orbs collided there was an explosion of cataclysmic proportions that rocked the entire battlefield.

Boruto dropped down to the ground and held his hands above his head. He was genuinely fearful for his life at this point given that he had never even dreamt of a collision of this proportion ever in his life. He was witnessing what he could only describe as two forces of nature going against one another. He thought he had come to learn what it meant to be a shinobi ever since he started training with his master, but for the first time he realised that he truly knew nothing. Thus he braced for impact and prayed for the wellbeing of both himself and his master.

Luckily his prayers were answered as when the earthquake slowly subsided and the smoke raised by the impact cleared he found his master still standing strong. Unfortunately the enemy opposite to him was standing tall as well. In between them though was a gigantic crater that almost made it took like a meteor had landed on the ground. Boruto gasped in both shock and awe.

"You're strong Hokage. I'll give you that." Tobi admitted, coming to appreciate his brother's strength through their bout.

"So are you." Naruto admitted as well. Even though Tobi's plans were nefarious, Naruto couldn't help but appreciate true strength.

"However, our bout must end here this time. For now consider the child safe. But…in due time I will be back for him and he will be mine!"

"I won't let you get away!" Naruto was about to make a move when several white chains popped up from the ground and wrapped around his legs.

Menma had used his mother's technique to distract Naruto mementarily and that was all he needed to teleport out of there at once.

"Darn it he got away!" Naruto cussed under his breath, annoyed at himself for letting Tobi escape so easily. Tobi truly was akin to a slippery eel, and a strong one at that he thought.

" _It's okay Naruto-kun. For now we managed to protect Boruto successfully. That is reason enough to be happy."_ Houka consoled him as they were finally able to relax once more.

" _That's true but that guy is seriously dangerous. I need to do something about him to protect both Hinata and Boruto. I need to act fast."_ He replied while undoing the seal binding himself and Houka together. "Seal Release."

With one quick hand motion Naruto opened up the seal and Houka detached from his body, taking her form as an ethereal reddish-orange Leopard as Naruto lost his cloak in the process.

"Regardless, it was truly special joining together with you once more. I know the situation was grim but it was actually kind of fun just like old times."

"Yeah, I felt the same way too." Naruto said with a smile.

"Is your nose okay? Does it hurt really bad?" She asked out of concern.

"Don't worry about it. It's fine. Not like this is the first time I've broken something. I'll get a doctor to have a look at it later."

"I wish I could stay and escort you but I'll have to take my leave. I need to stay out of Boruto's sights as much as possible so I can protect him from the shadows and he doesn't by any chance recognise who I truly am. I will see you later." Thus with a quick goodbye Houka ran away from the prairie and disappeared into the woods.

As such Naruto and Boruto were left by themselves once more, only this time the beautiful prairie they had stopped to rest at was a destroyed wasteland.

Boruto looked around and was slowly starting to see the destruction ninjas were capable. Even if it was just a little, his young mind understood a bit what his mother meant when she told him that the shinobi always left a path of destruction in their wake. Worst of all was the fact that all this fighting took place over him, because some crazy guy wanted to kidnap him for whatever reason, and that man was still at large. That thought scared Boruto.

"Boruto, are you okay?" Naruto asked as he kneeled down next to his son seeing that he was visibly shaken.

"Why did he want to take me?" The young boy asked.

"I…don't know." Naruto gave an honest reply as he truly did not know Tobi's motives.

"Is that bad guy going to come after me again?"

Naruto could see the concern in the young boy's face, so much that it pained him inside. As such he embraced Boruto in a comforting hug. "It's okay. Don't worry about it. I'll protect you from anyone and everyone that may try to harm you. It's a promise."

His master's words and his warm embrace slowly drained away all of Boruto's worries. Although he couldn't pinpoint it why, there was something about his master's words that gave Boruto reassurance. As such he chose to believe and started to once again return to his usual cheerful self.

"Alright then Boruto, I think we've had a much more eventful day than I had planned. I think we should head back home." Naruto said as he placed Boruto above his shoulders.

"Yeah I think that would be good." The young boy looked around the battlefield once more and was truly in awe of his master's powers. It made him gain an even greater level of appreciation for him since he was both a powerful yet kind man.

Thus Naruto travelled back to the village with Boruto and dropped him off a safe distance from his home, making sure that he got back safely. After that he himself headed to a doctor to get his nose checked and then returned back to his mansion for some much needed R&R in preparation for the big day tomorrow – Boruto's birthday.

 **Later that night…**

It was midnight. Both Boruto and Hinata were fast asleep together, Boruto opting to sleep with his mother after everything that happened today. However, deep within the forest surrounding their house there was one soul who was wide awake and stalking the pair.

The masked man finished placing a seal on one of the trees in the forest which would act as a beacon. He then took off his mask to reveal a sinister smile that displayed his inner elation. For this man was the one who tried to kill Hinata when she left Konoha and was the one behind her separation with Naruto. He was the mastermind behind all the conflicts that plagued both Naruto and Hinata. And he had now managed to locate Hinata and Boruto after 8 long years.

"Naruto Uzumaki, you think you are clever. However I am always two steps ahead at all times. You thought you had finally captured me when you ensnared Danzo with your little mind games. Yet you failed to realise that Danzo and his cronies were nothing but decoys I set up for that very purpose so that they could take the fall for me eventually when the time arrived. And now you yourself have led me to your wife and child. How ironic is it not that you yourself have brought upon them their demise when they barely slipped away from my hands the last time." He started laughing almost maniacally to the point that one could even question the man's mental stability. But as quickly as he went off the fringe, his intentions became razor focused once more. "Naruto Uzumaki…this time without a shadow of a doubt, I will bring about an absolute end to you and your family. That end is nigh!"

Thus an ultimatum from the mastermind behind all the chaos.

* * *

For lack of a better term, s**t is about to hit the fan. As promised the next chapter will be on the 27th on this month in celebration of the anniversary of this story and it'll be the reveal of Naruto as Boruto's father. How do you guys think Boruto will find out the truth? I'd love to hear your ideas, and if anyone comes close to guessing how it actually happens I'll give massive props next time. It'll be pretty big.

Also now that it's been revealed that Danzo was not in fact the real culprit, who do you think the masked man is? Questions, questions. All will be answered shortly, do not worry. But it's fun to see what you guys are thinking.

Now to answer a few questions/comments of yours from last time:

 **tom80:** "Tobi" and the "masked man" at the end of this chapter are two different entities. Tobi is Minato/Menma while the masked man's identity has not been revealed yet. Back in chapter 12, "Ideals VS Reality", Minato as Tobi helped Hinata escape from the masked man and run away from Konoha. I know the naming can be a bit confusing because they are both wearing masks, but they are definitely two different people.

 **Deadly-DeathStar, SpicyWifey, Reading Pixie, Erosdeath, ShinichiKudo7:** Glad you guys liked Menma's interaction with Hinata. It was meant to be something silly and not to be taken seriously. Menma wasn't actually trying to steal away Hinata. He just acts like a bit of a goof a lot of times. But the whole scene was more geared towards showing in a funny way how dedicated Hinata is to Naruto considering I've shown in several occasions (with Hanabi for example) how Naruto is fully dedicated to Hinata.

That is all for now. Let me know your thoughts and join me next time on the anniversary of this story for the big reveal. Until then, take care and enjoy the holidays!


	27. The Long Lost Father

**The Long Lost Father**

Welcome to the one year anniversary of this story! Last year on this very day I posted the first chapter of this story and man has it come a long way since then. You guys and gals showed this story amazing support throughout the year and I had an amazing time both writing it and interacting with you all, reading all your reviews and interesting feedback you gave, both good and very constructive ones. I hope we can continue doing so and take this story to even greater heights.

In any case, I know you've been waiting for this chapter for some time now. So here it is, the reveal of Naruto as Boruto's father!

* * *

It was the morning of Boruto's eighth birthday.

Hinata's normally quiet house was bustling with the noise of children this morning and the place was decorated with balloons and all sorts of confetti for the occasion. Around a dozen of Boruto's closest classmates were here to celebrate the occasion with him.

Hinata carried over to the dining table an 8 layered cake that was so nearly unrealistic in size that it needed to be seen to be believed. The sheer spectacle of it left all the kids in awe as they had never seen anything quite like it before. Hinata's baking prowess was in clear display here and every year during Boruto's birthday she challenged herself to push her own skills to the limit, adding one extra layer to his birthday cake to signify his growing of age. The cake itself was about half as big as Boruto himself and he had to stand on a chair to be able to tower over it.

Hinata had appropriately decorated the cake with the words "Happy 8th Birthday To Boruto" and attached candles to each layer of the cake, making for an unreasonable amount of candles to blow out for one child.

But she had a plan in that regard. "Kids, as you can see there are a bit too many candles for Boruto to be able to blow out by himself, so I want you all to help him in doing so."

"HAAAAAI!" All the kids sang in unison. None of them had any qualms in blowing out birthday candles, especially when it came to a cake as monumental as this. They all got up on chairs as well to do the honours.

"Alright then, let us begin – Happy birthday to you…" Hinata started the song to commemorate Boruto's special day and all of his friends joined in with her, everyone singing in perfect unison. "Happy birthday dear Boruto. Happy birthday to you!"

A round of applause broke out across the room as Boruto blew out the candles at the very top of the cake and initiated the event that would be to blow out each and every single one of the candles all over the cake. All of his friends joined in and with their help Boruto was able to blow out the rest of the candles in a timely manner.

Hinata gave Boruto a knife and held his hand with her own in order to guide him in getting a perfect slice out of the behemoth of a cake in front of him. A second round of applause broke out as Hinata fed Boruto the first bite out of his birthday cake. He returned the honour and helped his mother to the second bite. Thus the birthday celebrations were fully under way.

"Everyone, as you can see, I've made more than enough cake for any single person to be able to finish. So feel free to have as much cake as you can possibly eat." Hinata announced to everyone in the room and they all responded with a resounding YES. None of them had any qualms in eating cake. As such Hinata got to work in the monumental task of cutting up slices upon slices of the cake for everyone to start eating. She didn't even manage to get halfway through the cake though before all the kids were flat on their backs from having had way more than their share of cake.

Once the kids rested up Boruto suggested that they all go out into the woods in order to play hide and seek as they did so often during their breaks at school. The difference now was that the playground here would be far more massive. All the kids excitedly ran out of the house in order to survey the surroundings and find their hiding spots.

Before Boruto could join them, Hinata stopped him for a second and wrapped around him a hand crafted blue scarf. Instantly the warm feeling of his mother's love embraced him. The comfort he received from the scarf truly could not be explained with words and it also had the cool factor given that Boruto wore the scarf in such a way that the two ends of it floated behind his back almost like a superhero's cape. This reminded him of a very similar blue scarf that his master wore almost on a regular basis which Boruto thought looked pretty cool. Little did he know that blue scarf was also one that Hinata had made for Naruto many years ago.

"How is it dear? Does it feel comfortable to wear? I made it for you myself."

"It's so nice and warm. It's great! Thank you for the amazing birthday party and gifts Kaa-chan!" Boruto showed his gratitude to his mother by placing a quick kiss on her cheek, one that left her mesmerised for a few seconds before she returned the favour and kissed him back on his cheek.

"You should go and play with your friends. You don't want to keep them waiting."

Taking Hinata's advice Boruto ran out of the house to join his classmates while Hinata went back inside to clean up the house, both of them feeling a great sense of joy in their hearts. Truly the bond between mother and child was something special.

Since it was Boruto's birthday he was given the honour of being the seeker while all of his friends hid nearby within the woods. Normally given the size and scope of the area, the seeker would be the one having a hard time, but this was a moment Boruto was waiting for in order to try out one of his special abilities. He activated his Byakugan and instantly located every single one of his friends' hideouts. He couldn't help but giggle uncontrollably at the upper hand he had over them, and even though it felt like cheating Boruto would take full advantage of his innate powers. Thus he went around the forest and one by one plucked out his friends from their whereabouts until he won the game in a short period of time. They repeated several more rounds, all of which Boruto won until they all decided to switch Boruto with someone else as the seeker out of frustration. But even then given that Boruto knew exactly where the seeker was coming from using his eyes, he just kept changing his hiding spots until eventually his friends gave up and he won again. They returned back home to eat some more cake and play a few more games before his friends would have to return back home in the afternoon. All in all it turned out to be a day of great fun thus far for Boruto.

Once evening arrived Boruto asked permission from his mother to go out to play for a bit longer to which she agreed as long as he was back before sunset. Admittedly Houka would be keeping an eye on him during this time, so Hinata wasn't too worried. Thus Boruto set off in a hurry and after some walking, he in front of his master's mansion on the other side of the village. He knocked on the door and waited impatiently for the surprise that his master had in store for him.

Boruto heard what sounded like a hundred pops go off at once of shadow clones disappearing out of existence and the door opened only for a gust of smoke to blow out of the mansion. Boruto coughed a few times and opened his eyes, only to find his master standing in front of him and the entire mansion behind him decorated with a plethora of colourful lights, balloons and all sorts of crazy décor that would make a child go crazy. And sure enough Boruto was stunned silent. He had never seen anything so grand. The mansion looked like it was ready to host the biggest and most amazing birthday party ever.

"Oh you are finally here. Come on in!" Naruto got behind his son to push him inside, pointing to a handle that was hanging down from the ceiling. "I want you to pull this."

As soon as Boruto pulled the handle a hailstorm of confetti rained down from the ceiling, covering the young boy and everything the else in the mansion as far as the eyes could see. This was a treatment meant for a royal child, which Boruto was in a way being the son of the Hokage, or it was as close to royalty as one could get.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY BORUTO!" Naruto along with Hiashi and Hanabi who appeared almost out of nowhere congratulated the young boy.

"Auntie, old man grandpa, you're here too!" Boruto was overjoyed to see his other family members on his special day. He had been waiting for the next opportunity to meet them given that he had taken a really big liking to them both.

"Of course, that goes without saying. How could I miss my grandson's birthday?" Hiashi replied in a matter of fact kind of way as he ruffled the young Uzumaki's hair.

Hanabi on the other hand wrapped Boruto in a big hug. "Of course I'm here to celebrate my kawaii nephew's birthday! Even a dragon couldn't stop me if it tried."

"I think a dragon would probably be able to stop you though." Boruto argued just for fun.

"Oh yeah? Well then bring on the pesky dragon. I'll teach it a lesson for trying to stop me from going to my nephew's birthday party."

"I think you should stop arguing over a mythical creature that doesn't quite exist. Let's take young Boruto to his gifts instead." Hiashi suggested.

"GIFTS!?" Boruto's ears perked up instantly.

Naruto, Hanabi and Hiashi guided Boruto to one of the many rooms in the mansion, one that they used to store the gifts they had bought for Boruto in commemoration of his birthday.

"You do the honours Boruto." Hanabi directed Boruto in front of the door and placed his hand on the doorknob.

"That may not be such a good ide-" Before Naruto could finish, Boruto already turned the doorknob out of excitement and instantly a sea of gift boxes came snowing down from within the room and engulfed all four people in the hallway.

"What the heck is up with this Nii-nii?" Hanabi asked as everyone dug themselves up from within the toys.

"My clones…may or may not have just shoved all the gifts inside that room and forcibly shut the door." Naruto replied with an empty laugh which was quickly shot down by the Hyuga's glares.

Boruto on the other hand did not mind. In fact he was ecstatic, not knowing what gift to open first. He didn't know of any child who had ever received this many gifts in their entire lifetime, let alone in one birthday. He was on cloud nine.

Naruto now turned towards Hiashi and gave him a disapproving glance. "Don't you think you and Hanabi overdid it a little old man? I mean buying an entire store's worth of gifts is a bit ridiculous isn't it?"

"This was my grandson's first birthday that I was able to attend. No concessions were going to be made. In any case, wasn't it you who planned this whole party and set everything up?"

"Well yeah I mean he is my…you know."

"Alright you two, no need to start any arguments here." Hanabi interjected before turning her attention towards her nephew. "Boruto I know you want to open up the gifts but we've prepared a meal as well, so let's all go and have some food first okay?"

Boruto nodded and the party headed towards the dining room. What was there could not be classified as a simple meal but more like a feast. The entire dining table was filled to the brim with all sorts of food, many of which Boruto had never even seen before. This was truly the royal treatment.

"Well, how about we dig in?" Naruto suggested and the entire family started their feastl. It was a grand affair and a lot of fun for Boruto as he enjoyed eating with his family members while listening to all sorts of stories about the Hyuga.

Once the meal was over Hanabi proposed that they all play a game together, one that was of Boruto's choosing. Instantly Boruto chose hide and seek, remembering all the success and fun he had earlier in the morning playing it with his friends.

"I shall be taking a much deserved rest while the two of you entertain the young one's request." Hiashi said to Naruto and Hanabi.

"Oh come on Otou-sama. You should join us too."

"Do you not think I'm a bit too old for hide and seek? Plus I'm tired from all the travelling and I'm not getting any younger. So I'll be in the other room recuperating." Hiashi replied before heading off to the guest room next door.

"Well he's no fun." Hanabi pouted. "In any case, let the three of us have lots of fun instead."

"Actually I just realised. The two of you have Byakugan. This isn't even gonna be a fair game." Naruto complained.

"Don't worry Nii-nii, we won't use our Byakugan, right Boruto?" Hanabi asked her nephew with a wink.

"Of course, we definitely won't." Boruto replied back with a wink of his own.

"I can see you two winking and smirking. Fine, I'll be the one doing the seeking then. At least that way you won't be able to blatantly cheat. Plus I won't use my ninja senses either. Otherwise it'll be no fun." Naruto laid out the rules. "Well what are you waiting for? I'll be in the kitchen, so go hide. I'll start searching in 15 minutes."

He didn't need to say it twice. As soon as he entered the kitchen Boruto and Hanabi decided to take upstairs and downstairs respectively and bolted to find their hiding spots.

Boruto scrambled around to find a suitable place until eventually he stumbled across the closet in Naruto's room. It was pretty densely packed with his clothes which made it the perfect spot to bury oneself within the clothing to hide.

Boruto did just that as he entered the closet, shutting the door behind him and placing of pile of clothing on top of him. He was very proud of his new hiding spot indeed.

Some moments passed and he lost track of the time until his master would start searching. So Boruto activated his Byakugan to find that his master was still sitting around in the kitchen. It was going to be a little while before he would begin, so he'd have to wait for a bit. Getting a bit bored out of anticipation, Boruto's extended vision with his Byakugan allowed him to see a laptop nearby at one corner of the closet. He reached out to the bag and pulled out the laptop from within. This could help pass a bit of time, he thought.

He opened the lid only to find a lock screen welcome him and asked for a password. Well this was no fun, Boruto thought, but an idea came to his head. His master seemed obsessed with ramen all the time, so maybe…

Boruto typed in the word "ramen" and pressed enter. Boom, he was in. The young boy sighed at his success. Even though his master was an incredibly powerful shinobi, he was sometimes far too predictable when it came to what he loved. Regardless Boruto was in and he was now itching to browse the laptop to check out the contents within. Even though he knew he shouldn't be doing this, Boruto couldn't help his curiosity.

The desktop was almost empty apart from a few documents that Boruto had no idea what they were about. So he went for the next most interesting place – Pictures. As expected there were tons of photos here sorted out into various folders. He went into the first one named "Inauguration". All the photos here were of Naruto on the day he became Hokage, most of taken with people that Boruto didn't know of. A few of them were specially subtitled, the ones that were with his closest friends and graduates from the ninja academy. Many others were with older, more formal looking people.

So Boruto backed out and now found another folder named "Family". This seemed more interesting. Once he went inside, all Boruto saw were the pictures he had taken with his master since they met. He found it odd as to why his sensei would place all their photos together in a folder called family. Perhaps since he lost his own family, his master thought of him as family as well. Boruto didn't think much of it and instead was reminded of all the fun times the two of them had shared together ever since they met and started training together. These past few months in fact had brought the most fun times Boruto had in his life thus far.

Leaving the reminiscing aside, he once again backed out of the folder and now searched for something more interesting. In just a moment his eyes landed on the jackpot, a folder titled "Wedding". Instantly Boruto knew that this must be photos of his master's wedding and it must have the pictures of the wife that he talked about so much, the one person that he loved with all his heart but who left him with his child. Boruto's curiosity was now soaring sky high in the clouds. He wanted to know how she looked like.

As such he clicked on the folder and the very first photo made his heart nearly jump up to his throat.

He recognised it as a picture of his mother at a younger age, in her late teen, dressed in a full wedding kimono.

Now Boruto's mind was going crazy. Why was there a picture of his mother in a wedding dress in his master's laptop? He scrolled to the next photo and it was almost as though his world was turned fully upside down.

This was a photo of his mother standing next to his master, both fully garbed in their wedding dresses respectively. Boruto couldn't believe what he saw. He refused to believe what he saw. He kept scrolling but it was picture after picture of the two of them in their wedding attires with various other people, some of whom Boruto recognised from the inauguration photos, in particular his grandfather and aunt. There was no two ways around it. These were their wedding photos.

The implications of these photos were literally life altering and the young boy's mind did not know how to process it all. He kept scrolling through the photos like a mad man hoping to find something that would prove that this was all a sick joke, that it was made up. But proof after proof stacked on top of one another until eventually he reached a lone video file at the very bottom of the folder, titled "A Special Day". Boruto was almost afraid of what he would see within, but in the hopes of finding some form of solace within his mind that was going completely crazy right now, he clicked on the video and let it play.

 **Video Start…**

The video started with a much younger, 19 year old Hinata's face front and centre as she was still setting up the camera.

"Okay so this is going to be a recording of me giving Naruto-kun the big news. I thought it might be fun to record his reaction. He should be arriving back from work any second now." She said into the camera before backing off from it, revealing a very neatly decorated living room. The camera was set up above the TV and overlooked most of the living room but was focused mainly on the sofa and the glass table in front of it, which was decorated with a vase full of colourful flowers. Just from a glance one could easily see the Hinata's adorning influence on the house.

Hinata herself appeared slightly nervous as evidenced by her fidgety body language, but she seemed giddy with excitement at the same time. She was now waiting in front of the door to the living room that led to the hallway with the main entrance to the house. This was going to be a huge moment for both her and Naruto.

The sound of the main door to the house opening could be heard.

"Hinata, I'm home!" Naruto's voice echoed from the hallway as he took off his shoes and his jacket before finally making it into the living room and into the camera's frame. His first action was to wrap Hinata in a tight hug as he always did after returning back from work. It had become almost like a ritual ever since they got married roughly a year ago.

"Welcome back Naruto-kun." Hinata replied as she wrapped her arms around him as well. The two shared each other's warm embrace for a moment before finally separating.

"So, did you visit the doctor today?"

"I told you Naruto-kun. There's nothing to worry about. It's just a little morning sickness. No big deal."

Naruto now gave his wife a disapproving look. "Don't tell me you didn't visit the doctor. You've been feeling nauseous every morning for a while now and even vomitted yesterday. I don't care what you say but that worries me. If you don't visit the doctor, I'll take tomorrow off and take you there myself."

"No, no that won't be necessary. I did go to the hospital today and got myself checked up. As I said, there's nothing to worry about. It's just a bit of morning sickness that should clear up soon. And the doctor even prescribed me some medicine." Although Hinata was being honest, she was only telling half the truth. She was simply waiting for the perfect time to break the news.

"Oh, is that so? Well in that case I'm glad. Here I got you your favourite." Naruto handed Hinata the paper bag he was holding on to.

One look inside and her eyes lit up like light bulbs. "Cinnamon buns!"

Hinata always had an undying love for cinnamon buns, but recently that love had turned into a craving. She felt like she couldn't live without having them every single day. And Naruto being the caring husband that he was always made sure to bring home cinnamon buns when coming back from work.

Before Hinata completely lost herself in her urge to devour some cinnamon buns, she quickly shook her head to refocus on Naruto in order to deliver to him what would be life changing news. Naruto however had some other plans.

In a swift motion that surprised Hinata, he lifted her off her feet bridal style and carried her over to the sofa and laid her on it gently, now towering over her.

"N-Naruto-kun, w-what are you d-doing!?" Hinata stuttered a bit from being caught off guard. Despite being married to Naruto and spending so much time with him, every now and then she would sometimes still get tongue tied whenever he did something bold, a trait that she didn't completely lose from her younger days.

"Don't pretend like you're innocent here Hinata. You know full well what I'm intending after what you did this morning."

"Eh? W-Whatever did I do?" She replied, feigning obliviousness.

"Oh so now you're gonna play innocent huh? You can't wake a man up from sleep like that and not expect anything to happen afterwards. I had to leave for work immediately since I was about to run late, but because of you I couldn't focus on work all day. I even got yelled out by that pervy old sage for not paying attention to what he was saying. Yet all I could think about was you."

"I tried waking you up earlier in the morning but you kept saying you'd sleep for five more minutes, which never works out. You never sleep for just five more minutes. So I thought it'd be more effective if I did something a bit more drastic and decided to try…that." Hinata's face appeared almost as ripe and red as a tomato as she recalled the events that occurred earlier in the morning.

"Despite the way you may appear, you're actually a really naughty girl aren't you Hinata?" Naruto teasingly asked his wife. "Well it's time you faced the consequences of your actions."

Naruto slowly moved in for a kiss, but as his lips were about to touch Hinata's, she pressed her index finger on his lips in order to stop him.

"Naruto-kun, there is something I need to tell you."

"Come on Hinata, the talk can wait for later. Let's not kill the mood right now."

She shook her head and looked him dead in the eye, conveying the gravity behind what she wanted to say. "This is more important than anything I've ever told you before. It is something that will impact our very lives unlike ever before."

Now Hinata had Naruto's undivided attention as he sat up straight on the sofa, but his expression changed to a very worried one. "Please don't tell me its bad news."

"Do not worry. It's not bad news. In fact it's the best news I'll ever have the pleasure of sharing with you." Hinata replied with a smile.

"Well then what is it? Tell me! I want to know."

There was a brief pause as Hinata took a deep breath to deliver a life altering message.

"Naruto-kun…I'm pregnant."

Silence. Naruto was stunned to silence. Moments passed but no words escaped his mouth. He just looked at Hinata wide eyed and this concerned her a bit.

"Naruto-kun, you heard what I said right?" She asked, placing her hand gently on his cheek. "I'm going to be a mother, and you are going to be a father."

Those words, they brought tears to Naruto's eyes as he suddenly grasped Hinata in the tightest hug he had ever held her in.

"N-Naruto-kun! Are you okay!?"

"HINATA! DID I HEAR YOU CORRECTLY!? I'M GOING TO BE A FATHER RIGHT!? AM I REALLY GOING TO BE A FATHER!?" He asked, not able to hold in his tears or his elation.

"Yes Naruto-kun, you are going to become a father." She reassured as she shared with him in his happiness, which was almost contagious.

Naruto finally released Hinata from his embrace and now looked directly into her eyes. "I…I still can't believe it! I am going be a father! This is one of the happiest days of my life! We're going to have a baby and our family will finally be complete! Thank you so much Hinata! Thank you!"

Hinata knew that Naruto would be ecstatic from hearing the news, but to see him so overjoyed brought a smile to her face. She understood the value of family to Naruto given that he had lost his at a very early point in his childhood. That is why he always craved having his own family. That is why the idea of having their very first child completely overwhelmed him with joy.

Hinata used her fingers to wipe away Naruto's tears. "You shouldn't cry Naruto-kun. As you said, this is one of the happiest days of our lives. The two of us, we finally get to become parents. Our family will become even bigger. So this should be a time for us to celebrate."

Naruto nodded wholeheartedly with a heartfelt grin. "You're right. There's no time to cry. I need to prepare. Just you watch Hinata, I'm gonna be the best dad ever and love our baby with all my heart!"

"You and me both Naruto-kun." Hinata added.

"That's right! We'll be the best parents ever. So let's welcome our child together into this world and give him or her the happiest life imaginable."

Thus Naruto and Hinata shared one of the most joyous moments of their lives together and prepared to welcome their very first child into the world. The child that would one day become known as Boruto.

 **Video End…**

Boruto's heart and mind were in disarray. He had finally learned the truth. The truth about his father's identity and the fact that his father had been in front of him all along. He couldn't believe his own eyes and ears, yet there was no mistaking it any longer. The person he had come to know so well over the past few months; the person he had come to adore and respect so much; the person who was there to take care of him in his most desperate times; that person, the one he called sensei was in reality his father – Naruto Uzumaki.

Boruto shut off the laptop and placed it back in its bag. He then burst open the closet doors and ran out of the room without paying any attention to his surroundings, continuing down the stairs and into the foyer of the mansion before finally bumping into the man he dreaded right now and fell on to his backside.

His master, or more accurately, his father was standing right in front of him. Even though Boruto knew him so well, it felt like he didn't know this man at all right now. And that feeling scared him.

"What's the matter Boruto? I just found your aunt and was about to start looking for you upstairs. Did you get impatient and decided to give up? Come on now. You can't be so restless. Patience is a great virtue." Naruto explained in a very fatherly tone. Yet the look in Boruto's eyes was as though he was looking at a ghost, something that Naruto had never seen before. It was almost as though the young boy was afraid of him. "Boruto, are you okay?"

Those last words snapped Boruto out of his trance and he got up once more.

"I'M GOING HOME!" He blurted out before running out of the mansion at full speed, not looking back even once.

"Wait Boruto!" Naruto called out, but his son was gone like the wind.

"What just happened?" Hanabi asked since she saw the whole event unfold in front of her eyes as well. "Did you say something to him earlier?"

"Not that I know of." Naruto was left truly confused by Boruto's behaviour. He was normally never like this.

Outside of the mansion Boruto ran as fast as his legs carried him through the forest without stopping until he eventually reached home. He rang the doorbell and waited impatiently for his mother to open the doors. Once she did he ran past her and towards his own bedroom.

"Boruto, what's wrong dear? Are you okay?" Hinata asked.

"I'm fine. I'm going to bed!" Boruto replied before shutting the door behind him with a slam and disappearing into his room.

Hinata was instantly worried and activated her Byakugan to check on her son's physical condition, which seemed to be just fine. Thus she stepped out of the house for a second only for Houka to arrive at the scene in response.

"Did anything happen?" Hinata asked her counterpart. "He looked very flustered."

"He got into another argument with one of his friends I believe." Houka lied. She knew something had happened within Naruto's mansion but couldn't tell that to her true self. She didn't know the exact details either.

"I see. I'll go do something about it." Hinata waved goodbye to her counterpart before entering back into the house once more, deep in thought.

" _These sudden mood swings and haphazard behavioural patterns are starting to get a bit out of hand. I wonder if this is really due to arguments he's been getting into with his friends, or perhaps there may be a deeper problem here that I'm not aware of. I need to get to the bottom of this for Boruto's sake."_ Hinata was finally getting suspicious of the change she was witnessing within her son and it worried her greatly. As such she decided to take matters into her own hands and analyse the situation further in order to discover the cause of it all.

 **Later that night…**

It was close to midnight and the majority of Kumogakure was fast asleep. Yet in the Raikage's mansion, Ay was looking out of the window in his office while waiting in anticipation of a certain individual. Finally after what was a very long wait, the person in question materialised in front of his desk.

"Took you long enough." Ay said in his usual coarse tone as he turned around to face the masked man. "I take it that you've brought the information."

The masked man in turn placed a scroll on the Raikage's table along with a map. "Yes, this map has the general location of the target. On top of that I've hidden away a seal close to Hinata Hyuga's house. Once your men have arrived around the location marked on the map, they can use that scroll to track that seal which will act as a beacon to guide them to her whereabouts. There is absolutely no chance of her escaping this time."

"Darui!" Ay called out to his right hand man and instantly there was a third person who appeared in the room. "You heard the man. Take the map and the scroll. Your mission is simple – capture the Hokage's child."

"What about the Hinata Hyuga, Raikage-sama?" Darui enquired.

"If you can capture her along with the child, then that would be ideal. But if not, kill her. I do not care as long as the child is captured. I'm assigning this as an S-ranked mission, the absolute highest rank. You have open access to all tools and any member from the active roster as necessary. Pick whomever and as many shinobi required to get the job done. Failure this time is not an option. But if you are to fail Darui, I will have your head!" Ay gave a truly grim ultimatum to his right hand man. "The Byakugan will be mine this time at all costs!"

"Yes Raikage-sama, consider the job done." Darui replied in a calm tone despite the threat to his very life. "However if you don't mind me asking, since the Hokage is currently aware of his family's whereabouts, wouldn't capturing his son lead to conflict breaking out between Kumo and Konoha?"

"Worry not." The masked man interjected. "In Konoha's records his wife has long defected and his child isn't even recognised. This will be his personal battle to fight if he chooses to do so. If and when that situation arises, leave the Hokage to me. I will finally bring about his end. All you have to do is worry about his family."

The Raikage now raised three fingers at his subordinate. "You have three weeks to complete this mission. Get to work in preparing your team and deploy immediately. You're dismissed for now."

"Understood." Darui replied with a nod before disappearing from the Raikage's office.

"I take it your men will not fail this time."

"Do not concern yourself any further. Darui will get the job done. He is one of my best men. Now that you've provided their whereabouts, the Hokage's family will be taken care of."

"Very well, I'll take your word for it. Since I've held my end of the bargain, I take it in good faith that you'll hold your end when the time comes." The masked man reminded the Raikage as he turned around from him to take his leave.

"Of course I will hold my end of the deal as we planned. Rest assured." Ay lied through his teeth. He had no intentions of keeping his end of the bargain. All he cared about was capturing the Byakugan for himself. He was simply manipulating the masked man with fake promises in order to achieve that end goal. Or so he thought.

"Good, in that case I hope to hear of the news of success." The masked man replied with a sinister grin behind his mask.

" _I know full well you have no intention of keeping your end of the deal Raikage. My plans already take that into account. After all…I'M IN YOUR HEAD!"_ He thought to himself before disappearing from the Raikage's office.

Thus the beginning to the end.

* * *

Finally the stage is set and all the pieces are in place for Naruto and Hinata's reunion. Naruto and Hinata will come face to face within 3 weeks time (in story time frame of course, not real life time) and it will be big. Hope you're looking forward to it.

So I'll ask the ultimate question you all have been wondering about since the beginning of the story. Given everything that has happened thus far, how do you think Naruto and Hinata will finally come face to face? I'd love to know your thoughts now that we're finally at the precipice of their meeting.

From last time,

 **rodina2000:** Surprisingly enough my original plan as you said was to have Boruto find a picture of Naruto and Hinata's wedding that Hinata was keeping. That idea eventually morphed into the one that you read in this chapter. But those ideas are very similar and it's very amazing how you managed to predict that!

 **DarkManta** **:** My friend that was a beautiful read. That's all I'll say haha.

 **NarHina** **:** To be honest I wrote Menma to have his parents techniques and seem like their successor. As you said, he is like what Naruto would be if his parents were around. And as I said before, most of Menma's actions are written as comic relief, including his exchange with Hinata. He wasn't actually trying to pick her up, he was just messing around since it's part of his nature, which isn't good of course and he gets his comeuppance from his mother. That's sort of supposed to be the gag. I wouldn't take most of what he does seriously, apart from the few instances he gets deadly serious.

 **Reading Pixie, Deadly-DeathStar:** Yes Naruto will eventually find out Menma's true identity. In fact he'll find out that his parents are indeed alive. That should be quite a big moment as well.

That is all for today. I want to thank each and every single one of you once again for the great support you've shown me through your reviews and just by continuing to read this story. I hope you'll continue to do so. I love it all! So thank you once again and happy new year to you all. I will see you all in 2017! Until then, be well and take care!


	28. New Year's Special: Yandere

**New Year's Special Chapter: Yandere**

* * *

Naruto Uzumaki found himself lying on a bed but unable to move.

This was nothing new though. This sensation he had felt many times before and every one of those times it ended in disaster.

Naruto struggled with all his might but he couldn't move a single muscle. He felt helpless, as always. Yet he had to move; he had to get away at all costs; lest calamity befell him once more.

At that moment, he finally heard it. The footsteps of the scourge…the beast fast approaching. The helpless Uzumaki's heartbeats accelerated as the footsteps got louder until eventually the terror that haunted his nightmares stood just outside his door, at which point his heart felt like it was about to burst. And then the door creaked open, revealing the dark frame of calamity personified. It started to take steps towards its him.

Naruto struggled like a lunatic, trying with his very soul to set himself free, but it was to no avail. He tried and tried until eventually the calamity was right next to him.

 **This was it…**

He felt its cold touch on his skin and screamed bloody murder.

Naruto's eyes opened wide as he finally woke up from the nightmare that haunted him for years and the first thing he saw was a young girl with blue eyes and short blue hair staring at him, her fingers close to his face given that she had just touched him.

That look reminded Naruto of the beast that roamed his nightmares for a second and he scuttled backwards away from the girl until his back was against the wall. He curled up almost in a foetal position and started hyperventilating.

"O-Otou-chan, are you okay?"

That voice, it brought Naruto back to reality once more. It had a calming effect unlike any other and made him realise that he had been finally been freed from his ever recurring nightmare.

The girl standing in front of him was his beloved 8 year old daughter after all – Himawari Uzumaki.

"Y-Yeah, daddy's fine. Sorry about that Hima!" Naruto moved to the edge of his bed and ruffled his daughter's hair affectionately as he always did.

"Are you sure? You didn't look so good just a second ago." Himawari asked, her eyes filled with both concern and curiosity.

Naruto got up from bed and lifted Himawari off her feet and spun around the room with her playfully, making the girl giggle happily. "SEE HIMA! Never been better!"

After playing around with her for a minute or so, he placed her back on the ground and checked the clock. "Oh wow it's still half an hour before the alarm's supposed to go off. You're up early aren't you?"

"Hehe! I woke up just to wake you up!"

"Oh is that so? It seems my little baby is getting older and more responsible by the day. Thanks Hima." Naruto said proudly. "In any case, since I'm up already let me got get refreshed and I'll get to making breakfast."

Naruto headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face after which he headed to the kitchen to get started on breakfast.

"Otou-chan, I want to help too!" Himawari requested enthusiastically.

"Alright in that case how about you wash the rice for me?"

Himawari rushed over to the dining table and dragged a chair over to stand up on it and reach the countertop so that she could do the job she was assigned. Although she could only perform small tasks given her age, she loved helping her father out in whatever way she could. Thus with the combined effort of both father and daughter, breakfast was ready in no time. They ate their meals together while making small talk before getting changed and headed out together.

Naruto and Himawari lived in a small house in the forest just outside of a mostly unknown village located somewhere close to the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning, very far away from the ninja villages. It was altogether a quiet and peaceful place, free from the influence of shinobi. Thus it was the ideal place for Naruto to have moved to with Himawari given his troubled past. But his daughter knew nothing of that past and neither did he want her to. He wanted her to live a simple life far away from the influence of the shinobi.

After only 15 minutes of walking the two reached their native village. Every day Naruto would take her to school in the morning before heading to his own work. Himawari sat on her father's shoulders and happily enjoyed the ride to school when her wandering eyes fell upon a bakery. This was swiftly followed by the delectable smell of freshly prepared cinnamon buns filling her nose, and instantly her self-control started to wane.

Naruto noticed this and looked up at her with a smile. "You wanna eat some cinnamon buns?"

The look on his daughter's face gave him the answer but she quickly regained her composure. "N-No, it's fine. I'm full already from the breakfast."

"Hima, how many times have I told you that you shouldn't hide stuff from your father?"

"B-But…what about the money? It's probably cutting it close this month too right? We don't have the kind of income to be buying unnecessary snacks out of the blue-" Before she could finish her father lightly pecked her forehead with his knuckles. "Oouwiieee!"

"You are still a child Hima, so you should act like one. Worrying about money, you should leave those kinds of things to me. Once you become an adult you'll have enough opportunities to worry about such things. So while you're young you should have fun and if there's anything you want you should ask your daddy for it. And I'll do my best to get it for you, because you know, it makes me happy to see you happy. You got that?"

Hima nodded silently in agreement.

"Now then, let's go get you some cinnamon buns!"

Before long Himawari was nibbling at one of her favourite foods without a care in the world, the sweetness of which nearly melted her heart. It was just so beautifully delicious.

"Is it good? Or perhaps given your expression I don't need to ask."

"IT'S AMA-ING!" Himawari barely managed to spit out the words with a mouth full of cinnamon bun.

"Hima…you're dropping crumbs all over my hair." Naruto complained playfully knowing how self aware his daughter generally was.

Instantly the little girl jolted upright and dusted away all the crumbs off of her father's head. "I'M SOWWY!"

"It's fine. I was only kidding. I'm just happy that you're enjoying it."

"Here Otou-chan, you have a bite too." Himawari extended her hand from above and held her half eaten bun in front of her father, to which he obliged and took a bite. "Isn't it good?"

"It is. It's delicious!" Naruto replied as father and daughter happily trotted along to their destination while enjoying an early morning snack.

Soon they arrived in front of Himawari's school and Naruto finally placed her on the ground once more and kneeled down on his knees next to her, making sure to wipe away any trace of cinnamon buns on her face and clothes.

"Alright Hima, be a good girl as always and head straight back home after school okay? I'll see you then."

"Okay, I'll see you in the evening Otou-chan." Himawari stepped on her tiptoes and kissed her father on the cheek before running off to school while waving him goodbye.

Thus it was the start of another day for Naruto. His first order of business was to drop his daughter off to school. Now he headed out of the village once again and deeper into the forest in order to start his actual day job as a lumberjack.

Naruto worked a simple job of chopping wood and supplying it to the carpenters in the village. Although this type of job was generally very hard labour for the general populace, given his ninja background and the ability to create clones, the work was made a lot easier. As such Naruto worked alone and managed to make a modest living for himself and his daughter. There was most certainly nothing extravagant about their lifestyle but he didn't mind. He was just happy to be able to live with his one and only family in peace.

He was hard at work and time flew by as usual until it was afternoon when he sensed something very faint that was getting stronger by the second, something he hadn't felt for a very long time. It did not take him long to realise what it was he was feeling. Instantly he dispelled all of his clones and dove to the ground. He used his ability to manipulate wind to cover himself in a thick layer of leaves and did his absolute best to suppress his presence.

It wasn't long before he saw from within a small gap in the leaf bed what he had suspected all along – a group of shinobi pass by through the treetops.

"KEEP SEARCHING! THAT MISSING NIN WAS SUPPOSEDLY SPOTTED AROUND THE VILLAGE NEARBY!" The leader of the group ordered his subordinates and they were gone as quickly as they arrived.

Naruto waited for a while to ensure that the coast was clear before finally emerging from hiding. His heart was beating like crazy, and worst of all he recognised those shinobi. They were all from Konoha. Those people, they were looking for a missing nin. Could it be? Could they be looking for Naruto? Had his whereabouts been found after all these years? What if they found Himawari?

All those thoughts, especially the last one plagued Naruto's mind and he didn't want to waste a second more out here. He rushed back to his house at full speed and made it there without any issues, sighing a breath of relief as he felt safe once more. Or so he thought…

Because at that very moment his entire life was about to be turned upside down once again.

"Naruto-kun…I found you!"

Those haunting words sent a cold chill down his spine and as he looked over to their source, his heart nearly stopped out of sheer shock and horror.

There she was, peeking out from behind a tree with a wide grin across her face. The midnight blue hair, the pure white pupil-less eyes, the very source of his nightmares that he ran away from so many years ago had finally caught up to him once more.

"H-Hinata…" Naruto's voice cracked while uttering that person's name.

"Naruto-kun…to be able to see you…after so many years…I've missed you so very much…" Hinata finally came out from behind the tree, the grin on her face becoming even wider almost to the point of appearing ghastly. With her eyes firmly locked on to Naruto, she started to slowly take one step at a time towards him almost like a predator stalking its prey.

Naruto's heart was pumping at full speed and he wanted to desperately run for his life, but fear overcame his body and he fell on to his back, allowing for Hinata to close the distance between them.

Hinata hunched down next to him and extended towards him her violently shaking hands which made it look as though she was having a seizure attack. This came to a sudden stop once she placed her hand gently on Naruto's cheeks. Now tears filled up Hinata's eyes instead.

"Aaaaaaaahhhhhh…N-Naruto-kun…I'm…I'm touching him after so many years…I can feel his skin….his warmth….I'm…sooooooo…HAAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPPPPPYYYYYY!" In just an instant Hinata's calm demeanour changed into a completely psychotic one as she grabbed Naruto in a bone crushing hug and dug her fingernails through his clothes and into his flesh. "NARUTO-KUN! NARUTO-KUN! NARUTO-KUN! NARUTO-KUN! NARUTO-KUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN! I'VE FOUND YOU! I'VE FINALLY FOUND YOU! I'VE FOUND MY GREATEST POSSESSION! I'VE FOUND MY MOST BELOVED POSSESSION! AND THIS TIME I'LL NEVER EVER LET YOU GET AWAY FROM ME! AHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Hinata's outburst and the sharp pain on his back from her fingernails digging into him brought Naruto back to his senses and made him regain control over his body. Thus he shoved her with all the force he could muster and sent her crashing on to the ground several feet from him. "STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU CRAZY BITCH!"

Hinata's body shivered visibly from top to bottom as she sat up once more with a look of ecstasy on her face. "Naruto-kun…touched me. It felt soooooo goooood to be touched by him again. I'm shaking all over, I can't stop! He even called me a crazy bitch, JUST LIKE OLD TIMES! It brings back so many great memories. But Naruto-kun, even though I know you're only doing so lovingly, you shouldn't be calling me with such bad words. I'm your wife after all."

"YOU'RE NOT MY WIFE! I WILL NEVER ACCEPT YOU AS MY WIFE! GET THAT THROUGH YOUR DELUSIONAL HEAD!"

"Hehehe…Naruto-kun…you love to joke don't you? I've always loved that part about you. In fact I love everything about you. Don't you remember the time when we got married? I will never forget that day. Our parents were there…our entire clans were there. They all gave us their blessings and we married each other to live happily ever after. Don't you remember? Don't you? DON'T YOU?!"

Her words brought back all the nightmares that haunted Naruto's dreams at once.

Even though technically Naruto and Hinata were husband and wife, their relationship could barely be described as a traditional one. This was due to many unusual factors, perhaps the greatest of which was Hinata herself. She was not normal. In fact she was mentally unstable and prone to having schizophrenic episodes ever since childhood. Although she normally remained reserved and uncaring towards most, when it came to the things that she loved she could easily become off the handle crazy at any moment. And given that Naruto was the person she loved above anyone else alive, her obsession over him was hard psychotic.

This began when they started going to the ninja academy in Konoha. That was the place when Naruto met Hinata. It wasn't that he talked to her or anything, but they were classmates and that was the beginning of Hinata's obsession towards Naruto. Even though she didn't interact with anyone in class, she started to grow an unhealthy fondness towards him which in turn became fully fledged stalking. At first she wouldn't have the courage to talk to him at the academy, so his belongings would go missing one by one. Before long she would be tailing him around town and eventually she would spy on him at his home with her Byakugan. Naruto knew something was wrong with the way Hinata behaved around him, but it was common knowledge that she was not normal and because her father was the leader of the most powerful clan in the village as well as the Hokage, no one dared mess with her. Naruto followed the same course of action and did not meddle with her at all. However this just allowed her to become crazier and crazier about him throughout the years until one day it happened.

Naruto was called in by the clan leader and out of the blue asked to marry Hinata. Apparently the Hyuga clan leader himself had made the marriage proposal. Unfortunately for him given his clan's status, this proposal was not a choice because of the clan's past. Long ago the Uzumaki and the Hyuga were once at war with one another, but that war eventually ended with the Uzumaki's defeat due to the Hyuga's superior strength. Even since then the Uzumaki clan served the Hyuga and became akin to their subservient slaves. Every Uzumaki was trained to serve their Hyuga overlords and in Naruto's case the matter was even worse given that Hinata's father was the Hokage and held absolute power. A rejection would thus be met with severe punishment and suffering for the whole clan. So this proposal was not so much a "choice" but more an order, and to save his clan and all its members from torture, a form of punishment the Hyuga loved to administer on their servants, Naruto had no choice but to accept the proposal. What Hinata wanted she got due to her father's support.

Thus Naruto and Hinata got married and their life together began, a life that Naruto could only describe as akin to being in prison, or even worse.

"Come on Naruto-kun…let us return home…to our wonderful love nest." Hinata walked forward towards Naruto with her arms stretched wide.

"NOOOO! Get away. STAY AWAY FROM ME! I'm warning you. I don't ever want to go back into that prison that you called home." Naruto replied as he was reminded of how he was essentially tied up and kept under house arrest ever since they got married so that he couldn't run away from Hinata. It was a truly horrific experience.

"How could you say that Naruto-kun? After all the time we spent together in that house. Do you not remember all the hot and passionate love making sessions we've had there? You never complained back then. We're both still young Naruto-kun. SO LET'S GO BACK AND CONTINUE WHERE WE LEFT OFF!" Hinata's slow walk suddenly turned into a mad dash towards Naruto. She was determined to capture him for sure this time.

"If drugging and forcing yourself on to me on a daily basis is your idea of hot and passionate love making, then you're wrong! I HAVE NO INTENTIONS OF EVER BEING TOGETHER WITH YOU AGAIN!" As Hinata got into point blank range, Naruto swung one of his fists as hard as he could towards her, but despite her madness she gracefully ducked under it and with deadly precision thrust her palm into his midsection with a great amount of force, one that knocked the wind out of Naruto and made him drop to his knees while gasping for air.

"I see how it is. You want to play hard to get. Yes, yes, that's the best way. It wouldn't be any fun if you just came back home with me without a word. Kuuuuuh! Naruto-kun you're so clever. I just keep falling more and more in love with you every day. So you want us to play rough. I see. I understand. Let's do just that. Let's have lots of fun together even if it ends up hurting a bit in the end!"

Naruto understood all too well that Hinata knew no bounds at anything. Once her mind was set on something, she would not give up until what she wanted was hers. There was no method to her madness. If he wanted to get out of her grasp, he would have to defeat her at all costs. But that would be difficult given how strong she was. The Hyuga had always been superior to the Uzumaki purely from a genetic level, and this matchup between the two of them was no different. Hinata was always inherently stronger than Naruto. But there was no way he would give up, because giving up now would mean there would be no hope for the future.

Naruto used his control of the wind release to send a powerful burst of air radially outwards from where he was, pushing Hinata back several feet from him and creating some distance between them. This allowed him the opportunity to use his signature technique and instantly the surrounding area became filled with hundreds of clones of Naruto, all ready to get into the fray.

The veins around Hinata's eyes bulged as she activated her dreadful Byakugan, but rather than moving she froze up in place. She wrapped her arms around herself as if she was in freezing cold and started to hyperventilate. The audibly deep and heavy breathing made it seem like she was having some kind of an episode, yet the look on her face defied all expectations. Her cheeks were flushed bright red and she was visibly salivating from her mouth while struggling to resist the uncontrollable shaking of her body. She truly was about to go off the deep end now.

"Naruto kun. As far as the eyes can see there is Naruto-kun. I can't get enough of Narto-kun. Everywhere there is Naruto-kun. No matter where I look there is Naruto-kun. THERE ARE JUST SO MANY NARUTO-KUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!" Along with that scream which reverberated across the forest, a blue shroud resembling a lion completely covered Hinata's body and two lion heads formed around her hands. "LET US DANCE TOGETHER IN THE FORM OF A BEAUTIFUL BALLET! COME TO ME NARUTO-KUN AND LET US BECOME ONE!"

Hinata lunged her body into the midst of the clones like a lion would at its prey and violently swung her claw shrouded arms as she moved haphazardly from one clone to another, popping them one by one. Yet despite it looking like she was going on an unrestrained rampage, there was definitely s pattern, a flow to her movement, one that made her attacks even more dangerous as she struck precisely at her target's weak points. Despite her mental insanity, Hinata was still the daughter of the Hyuga clan leader and as such by birth a prodigy that had mastered by Hyuga's arts. It was just that she seemed to have turned the "Gentle" fist into something more akin to the "Violent" fist.

The clones tried to subjugate her but she was both unpredictable and overwhelmingly powerful, tearing through them like knife through butter. Above all though, she seemed to be getting more and more crazy with each clone she popped.

"Aha….Ahaha…AHAHAHAHAHAHA! Naruto-kun…NARUTO-KUN EVERYWHERE! I'M LOVED! I FEEL SOOOOOO LOVED! ALL THE NARUTO-KUN THAT ARE SHOWING ME SO MUCH LOVE AND BURNING PASSION, I WILL LOVE YOU ALL BACK TENFOLD…NO, A HUNDREDFOLD…NOT EVEN THAT – A THOUSANDFOLD!"

Accompanying Hinata's outburst was the sound of clones popping left right and centre until eventually there were no clones left in her path. She had gone through them all. It was at this point that she felt the real Naruto rush at her from behind with a blue sphere in hand. She instantly turned around and formed a smaller but more menacing black sphere of her own and shoved it into his.

A massive explosion rocked the entire area and Naruto was sent flying backwards, colliding hard against a tree and toppling it over in the process. Having crashed into the tree trunk headfirst, Naruto was concussed and dropped on to the ground, unable to control his body. He could feel a hot sensation from the back of his head at first and as he started to regain his vision ever so slowly, he could see blood polling up on the ground around his face. That was however the least of his worries.

As he came to he saw Hinata towering over him with the same psychotic grin that haunted his nightmares. She grabbed him by the throat with both hands and hoisted him up off his feet like a little girl would with her doll. She saw the blood dripping from his head and licked it from his face.

"Mmmmmmm…delicious…Naruto-kun's precious blood." She licked her lips in joy, gripping his throat even harder, making it more difficult for him to breathe. "Now then Naruto-kun, I suppose the games are over right? It's time for us to go back home together. I've missed you so much…SO VERY MUCH…both emotionally and physically. Let us return back home and make love like two cute little bunny rabbits for all the times we missed out on over the years. Actually I don't even think I can control myself for that long. I see a house right here. It must be yours right? Let's just use that as our temporary love nest. Yes, yes, let's do just that. I want…no I NEED to be one with you as soon as possible. Because I love you Naruto-kun. I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you so very much. You love me too right? Say you love me too."

Naruto's body still hadn't quite recovered from the concussion and he could barely move or even see clearly for that matter. But the hatred he felt towards her since ages past seethed within him unlike ever before.

"Love you…huh…stop joking with me. I HATE YOU!" He spilled venomous at her. "You took everything away from me – my freedom, my happiness, my life. But above all else, you took away from me the two people I loved the most. You killed my parents. You are nothing but a MURDERER!"

Hinata's maniacal expression changed and she dropped her gaze and became quiet. "It was your fault Naruto-kun. I did it all because of you. You said you loved them. You said you loved your parents above anyone else alive, above me. I couldn't accept that. I couldn't accept you loving anyone else other than me. I love you and only you alone. It has to be the same for you as well. You can only love me and me alone. Neither can I accept anyone else loving you either besides me. That is why I killed you parents, because you loved them and they loved you back. I just couldn't accept that."

"YOU PSYCHO! My parents…my beloved parents, you murdered them in cold blood for your selfish maniacal reasons!"

"It wasn't selfish Naruto-kun. I did it for the both of us, to keep our love pure and untainted from anyone and everyone." She said with an unusually gentle smile. "You should have seen when I killed them, especially your mother. I asked her so many times to erase her love for you, so I could end it quickly. Yet she resisted so much. She kept saying how much she loved you with all her heart and that I didn't deserve you, or that I was crazy and the Hyuga forced you into this. So I had no choice but to rip her apart piece by piece until eventually I got to her heart...the very heart she said she loved you with…aaaaand…..SQUELCH! I crushed it within my very hands."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Naruto's scream of pain and agony could be heard across the forest, so much so that it caused the birds and animals so start shuffling about in shock. "I WON'T FORGIVE YOU! I WILL NEVER EVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THIS!"

Yet Hinata just ignored his outburst and firmed her grip around his throat even further. "Speaking of parents Naruto-kun, there is something very important we're missing aren't we? All those years ago you took our little baby with you. Our precious little baby, the one that I was never even able to meet. Where might that baby me right now Naruto-kun?"

Naruto's heart dropped at the mention of their child. In that one moment of Hinata's weakness when she was giving birth, Naruto was able to desperately find a way to escape from her clutches and make a run for it. But the ultimate reason for him doing so was to protect his child. He could never let their child fall into her mother's or the Hyuga's hand. If that happened, they would warp her as well. He could never let that happen and he would protect her at all costs from falling into Hinata's hands. That is why Naruto kept Himawari's legacy and the identity of her mother secret from her all this time. However, at that very moment his worst nightmares became reality.

"Otou…chan."

Naruto to us utter horror heard the pure and innocent voice of his little girl from a distance.

Hinata's grip on Naruto loosened and he fell back down on the ground. She now turned towards the source of the voice and her eyes widened in bewilderment. She was completely lost for words as her gaze fell upon the little girl with dark blue hair and pure white eyes – just like her.

Himawari on the other hand did not know what she was looking at. Her heart was racing from seeing all the destruction and carnage on what was once essentially the front yard of their house. But it was when her eyes fell upon her broken and bleeding father that her heart nearly came to a standstill. The one family member that she had, her beloved father was in a truly abysmal state. She had never felt dread of this magnitude ever before in her life. Himawari was in danger of losing the most precious person in her life. That fear overcame her completely and as she looked over to the culprit standing next to him, she completely lost it.

"OTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!" She screamed at the top of her lungs and with it the veins around her eyes bulged significantly as an unusual power unlike ever before flowed through them. For the very first time in her life, Himawari awakened her Byakugan.

"No…Hima, run." Naruto called out to his daughter, but his worst fears had come true. His words were no longer reaching her. Himawari had activated the Byakugan and was overcome by the power granted to her by her mother's lineage, something Naruto never wanted her to awaken.

"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE ANYONE THAT HURTS MY FATHER!" Himawari raised her index finger and pointed it menacingly at her mother. She wasted no time and rushed right at her target that she had locked on to with her eyes.

Hinata outstretched her arms in response with a crazed grin on her face. "That's right my little baby…come to your mama!"

Thus a collision between mother and daughter.

* * *

Okay, I'm wondering what your reaction is after reading through this chapter. I'd love to know. But I'm assuming you're probably confused, so let me explain.

To clarify, this is NOT a canon chapter of this story. As with my other stories I like to celebrate special occasions with special chapters. So as the title suggests, this is a one off special chapter and an alternate retelling of the first chapter of this story to celebrate the new year.

Now you might be wondering what the relation of this chapter is with this story. And the answer may be interesting to you. This chapter is essentially one of my initial ideas for this story. Originally I had an idea of writing a story about a crazy, yandere Hinata who is quite literally "madly" in love with Naruto and forces him to marry her using her clan's power (the Uzumaki clan and Naruto are inherently weak in that story), to the point where he has to eventually run away from her with their child. That story idea was later scrapped (I did also have another initial concept with a sadistic and evil Naruto forcing Hinata into marriage with him where she is the one who runs away), but the concept of Naruto/Hinata running away from the other remained and developed into the story that you've been reading for the past year. Of course in the actual story I've made it such that neither Naruto nor Hinata are inherently evil and there are plausible reasons behind their actions. Unlike my initial ideas as you read with this chapter, I really didn't want to make either one of them evil and I wanted their love to be mutual and deep. In the end I just couldn't really imagine Hinata as being yandere or Naruto being sadistically evil. I love their normal/usual characteristics way too much.

So there you have it. A look into one of the original concepts for this story. I know you want to read the actual next chapter and I'm working on it, but I wanted to have a small change of pace and do something different to start off the new year. It was fun for me to look back and see how one of my original concepts ended up evolving into the story we have today. I hope you all enjoyed the special chapter and I'd love to know your thoughts. Next time we'll get back to continuing the story from where we left off. See you then!


	29. Boruto's Decision

**Boruto's Decision**

* * *

 **Early Monday morning…**

Naruto was sneaking around Hinata's house while doing his absolute best to suppress his presence and be stealthy so that Hinata would not be able to sense or see him. Although this was very risky and he could potentially end up getting caught, he just had to do this in order to check up on Boruto and have a word with him. He was still confused by how Boruto behaved yesterday and ran away so haphazardly and needed to know what was going on.

After surveying the house from afar he found an open window to a bedroom and wanted to check out if it was Boruto's. After tiptoeing to the window and finding no one inside the room, Naruto decided to jump in to get a better look. Once inside it didn't take long for him to realise that this was actually Hinata's room.

Naruto looked around in awe and was reminded of how their bedroom once looked like many years ago. There was this distinct serene influence that Hinata had on the things that she touched. He walked around for a bit until his eyes fell upon a stacked laundry basket and instantly like a massive pervert he fished around until his grubby hands fell upon what he could only describe as the jackpot – a pair of used panties.

"WHOA!" Naruto held the pure white panties high up above his head as though he were holding kind of invaluable treasure. "It's still warm. She must have changed out of them not too long ago."

The lecherous Uzumaki looked left and right before quickly shoving the panties into his pocket.

"I'll hold on to this for…..reference! Yes reference!" He convinced himself, having a clear idea what sort of "reference" he was thinking of.

His eyes then fell upon Hinata's bed that was yet to be made after Hinata woke up this morning. Naruto couldn't resist the urge and jumped on to the bed and rolled around like a little kid while wrapped up in the blanket.

"This familiar smell, I've missed it so much! This is Hinata's scent! I just can't get enough of it!" Naruto was borderline losing himself being in a room full of his wife's essence after so many years, but he forced himself to come back to his senses once he remembered the real reason why he was here. "No, no, I mustn't do this! I'm here for a very important purpose and at this rate I'll end up getting discovered by Hinata, which would ruin all my plans. I need to do what I came here to do."

Thus he regrettably jumped out of bed and out of the room and made his way to the window on the other room of the house, the one that presumably belonged to Boruto. He knocked on the window ever so gently hoping that he would be able to wake Boruto up without getting Hinata's attention in the kitchen.

Inside Boruto was anything but asleep. In fact he barely managed to get much sleep all night, thinking about the very person that was knocking on his window and how that person happened to be his father. The young boy didn't know who would be outside his window this early in the morning and as such moved the curtains to see for himself. But as soon as he saw his master's, or more accurately as he found out yesterday, his father's face, he quickly shut the curtains once again. He simply didn't know how to face that man any longer. There had been just too many emotions surging within him ever since he found out the truth.

"Boruto what the heck man? Why did you run away from your birthday party yesterday? I was very worried and so were your aunt and grandfather. What happened? Come on, talk to me already." Naruto demanded, but to his dismay there was no reply. "Seriously Boruto, tell me what's going on. Are you mad at me for something? Did I do something wrong? If so you need to let me know and I'll try to rectify it. Come on little friend, I'm your master aren't I? Open up so we can talk face to face."

Despite the pleading Boruto simply refused to see eye to eye with his father. He just didn't know how to respond to him anymore.

"Okay I got it. You're mad at me. I must have done something wrong. But hear me out because this is extremely, and I mean EXTREMELY important. I'm heading back to Konoha for now but I'll be back again during the weekend as usual. This time however, I have something I need to tell you that I've never told you before. I have a confession to make to you Boruto, a heart to heart confession. So please, come meet me at my mansion this coming weekend. This is something that has taken me a lot of courage to prepare and you absolutely must know about it. I'm begging you Boruto; you have to give me this one chance to speak what is within my mind." Naruto pleaded to his son with all his heart in the hopes that he would respond, if not now but in a week's time.

Boruto thought for a second about what this important confession could entail and his eyes widened at the possibility. Could it be!?

He was about to turn around and remove the curtains when the door to his room opened and his mother walked in. "Boruto, you're up already. Is there something outside your window? I thought I heard some noise."

"O-Oh no, it's nothing." Boruto replied, not knowing how to cover up his master's presence any longer.

"Well let me check it out just in case." His mother replied and was making her way over to the window when they both heard the same noise.

"Meaow! Meaaaaaaooooooow!" The voice of a person very poorly imitating a cat drifted through the room.

" _Oh he's busted now."_ Boruto thought within his mind.

"So it was a cat. You should have told mama about it Boruto. I don't mind us having a cat." Hinata replied happily given her love for felines and convinced at the existence of a cat outside the window.

" _She actually bought it! In what world is that the sound of a real cat!?"_ The young boy thought to himself once more, shocked at how naïve or perhaps tone deaf his normally very intelligent mother could be sometimes.

Regardless, the momentary distraction was all Naruto needed to make a run for it, so by the time Hinata made it to the window and opened the curtains he was already long gone. This led to Hinata and Boruto to go about their usual routine and eventually head out to work and school respectively. Yet even when at school Boruto just couldn't get the thoughts of his father out of his mind.

He remembered all the times his master had told him about his wife and how she had left him with their child before he was even born.

 _"You know, this bakery reminds me a lot of my wife. She used to be an amazing baker herself. The cakes she made were incomparably better than any other."_

 _"I have a seven year old son, but unfortunately my wife took him with her and left me before he was even born."_

Boruto always felt sympathetic towards his master from the very beginning, but now knowing that he was actually his father gave everything he ever said to the boy a new meaning. Yet at the same time Boruto just couldn't get over the fact that his father kept that fact secret from him for so long. He felt lied to after finding out that his father knew all along that they were related yet pretended not to. It was as though he was cheated and that made him angry. But there was something about his father that made it difficult for Boruto to remain mad at him for long.

"-ruto…Boruto!" Boruto was suddenly jolted back to reality from his teacher's voice at the front of the classroom calling to him.

"YES MA'AM!" Boruto replied as he stood upright like a soldier standing at attention.

"Young man, you should be paying attention in class. It would be a bother if our honour student started slacking." The teacher said somewhat sympathetically given that Boruto was normally a model student. "In any case, start reading from your textbook as I instructed."

Boruto scrambled to grab the open textbook in front of him and was about to read, but found that he didn't know how to. "Ummm sorry teacher but the words don't seem to look right."

"That would be because you're holding your book upside down."

The entire class burst out into laughter and Boruto felt a bit embarrassed at the blunder but laughed it away as well. The incident helped take his mind off of the more pressing matters at hand, at least for the time being.

 **The next day…**

It was nearly evening and Boruto was helping out his mother in her bakery after school. Hinata was at the front of the store dealing with customers while Boruto watched the oven until the cookies were baked to perfection. Yet his mind was deep in thought regarding his father.

This time he remembered what his grandfather had said to him about his parents.

" _If he could your father would come rushing here right now to meet you. But he can't. Because he doesn't simply wish to meet you, he wants to take both you and your mother back with him. That has been his one true goal for the past 8 years ever since Hinata left him. He has searched relentlessly for the two of you without ever giving up and waited patiently for the day to come where the three of you could live together once more. That being said if he were to appear in front of your mother right now, it would be difficult to solve matters. That is the reason why he is willing to wait just a bit longer if that would allow him to fix everything. As your master told you Boruto – have faith in your father. He will most certainly come for you before long."_

His grandfather supported his son-in-law despite his daughter running away. It showed a level of faith that his father had earned from his mother's family that was probably unheard of for anyone else. That meant his father truly must have wanted both him and his mother back and despite not knowing why his father kept that fact a secret for all this time, a part of Boruto wanted to put his faith in his father as well.

"BORUTO, THERE'S SMOKE COMING OUT OF THE OVEN!" Hinata yelled from the front of the shop before running in to shut off the oven. She then opened the backdoor to fan the smoke out of the shop before the entire place smelled like burnt cookies. "What's the matter Boruto? How did you not smell the smoke while sitting next to the oven?"

"I…I'm sorry Kaa-chan." Boruto was shocked at his own carelessness and didn't have anything else to say other than to apologise.

"It's okay. We all make mistakes and you're normally a big help around the shop. But you should be careful son. I don't want you to get hurt."

Thus the incident ended without any big issues.

 **The next day…**

It was late in the evening and Hinata and Boruto were having dinner together. Or at least that as supposed to be the case given that Boruto was once again lost in thought about his father.

This time being in his mother's presence, he remembered what his mother had told him about his father.

 _"You should know this Boruto that there is only one man that I have ever loved in my life, whom I married. And I can never love anyone else like that ever again. "_

 _"You see Boruto, Naruto-kun and I loved each other from the bottom of our hearts. He was my childhood friend and my best friend at the same time. He was my classmate and also my squadmate at work. But above all, he was my husband and the father of my child – you Boruto. He meant the world to me, just as you do too. Contrary to what you may have believed, your father was not a bad person. I don't want you to ever feel that way. We didn't separate because he treated me badly or anything like that. It was quite the opposite. Your father was a really good person. Perhaps a bit too good. He wanted to protect everyone and make everything right. But unfortunately this world isn't as nice as your father, and because of that sacrifices needed to be made. I'm sure none of this makes sense to you, but I just want you to know that despite everything that happened between us, these facts will never change – I loved your father, and he loved me as well. And you Boruto are the manifestation of our love."_

In the past Boruto had wondered what sort of person his father was and perhaps the reason why his mother separated from him was due to him being a terrible person. But from his mother's own admission and having spent an extended period of time with him, Boruto knew that couldn't be further from the truth. Even if his father never told him about their relationship, that wouldn't change the fact that he was a truly kind individual who supported him when his mother needed help and that he was someone Boruto truly enjoyed being in the company of. On hand sight it seems obvious now that Boruto knew his father's identity, but that didn't take away from how much he loved being around his father and appreciated him for who he was as a person. Above all Boruto now understood quite clearly that his father wasn't just the one who wanted his mother back, but his mother also felt the same way.

"What's the matter Boruto? You aren't eating. Does the food not taste good?" Hinata asked, snapping Boruto back to reality.

"Oh no, the food's great as always."

"Boruto, dear, are you okay? You've been acting a bit off lately. You're always lost in thought. If there's something bothering you, you can tell your Mama."

"No, it's nothing. I'm good." Boruto shrugged his mother's inquiry off and went back to eating like normal.

Yet Hinata knew all too well that something was most certainly wrong and she intended to get to the bottom of it all.

 **The next day…**

It was afternoon and school was out. Boruto had come to the park along with his friends as usual, but today he decided to sit in a secluded corner by himself as opposed to joining them in their games. He needed to spend some time alone to put all of his thoughts together that had been plaguing his mind the whole week thus far.

Even though he understood that both of his parents loved one another deeply, the ultimate question still remained – who was correct? Who would Boruto side with? After all, the reason his parents broke apart was due to their differing viewpoints. Thus Boruto reminisced the story of his parents' separation that his grandmother had told him the first time they met – a confrontation between his father's idealistic viewpoint and his mother's realistic viewpoint.

 _"And so your parents separated despite the love they shared for one another. Even though the masked man had failed in his plan to bring about an end to your parents, he did manage to drive a deep wrench between the two of them, one that has persisted even to this day. I understand this is a lot of information for you to digest Boruto. It would be for anyone, especially someone of your age, but I ask you to think everything through carefully before judging either one of you parents. I know it is difficult to face the truth, but only by confronting it can a person truly grow. You must do the same in order to eventually decide whose actions you support most. Is it your mother who for your sake was willing to sacrifice all that she ever had? Or is it your father who believed he could overcome all the odds in order to secure a better future for his family and everyone else? Or perhaps there is a path that can reconcile them both."_

The last questions his grandmother left him with were tough and at the time Boruto simply did not know how to answer them. It would be simple for him to side with his mother, the one who sacrificed everything she once had for him, even the person that she loved most. Yet at the same time learning about his father's great exploits as a heroic individual and getting to know him personally, Boruto had gained a great appreciation of him. But more importantly, Boruto felt that this wasn't just all about him, or at least it shouldn't be despite the primary reason for his parents' separation being him. He felt that somewhere along the line his parents were overwhelmed by the clash between their own idealistic and realistic views and had overlooked the most precious thing that they shared – their deep rooted love for one another. All of these thoughts were a tad bit too overwhelming for the young boy and he visibly wracked his head for answers, yet he had this wish deep down that he wanted his parents to remember that love clearly, the very love that joined them together to begin with and brought him into this world. He just didn't know how.

At that moment of confusion and contemplation, Boruto felt someone place a hand on his shoulder. As he turned around he found the familiar face of his grandmother whose words he was just mulling over.

"BABA!" He shouted out in shock and received a prompt whack to the top of his head in return. "Ouch what was that for?"

"Who the heck are you calling BABA!? I'm not some old lady you know. I'm still in my forties."

"Well you are my grandmother aren't you? What else am I supposed to call you other than Baba?"

Kushina clicked her tongue in frustration. "Ah darn it you do have a point. Well at least refer to me a bit more respect, like Obaa-san, or even better Obaa-sama. Anything but Baba. That just seems pickles me for whatever reason. Maybe I'm not used to the idea of having a grandson already. That just makes me feel old."

"Okay okay I get it, whatever you want. But where the heck have you been all this time? I haven't seen you in months, especially after you told me that you'd come to see me again soon. I had so many things I wanted to talk to you about after you left."

"Yeah I wanted to say sorry for disappearing for a while Boruto. It's just that I was busy with quite a few things, and I also wanted to give you some time to think about what I had told you." Kushina replied as she took a seat on the park bench next to her grandson. "So let's cut to the chase. Have you figured out who your father is yet?"

Boruto gave his grandmother a surprised look. "Wait, don't tell me…you knew all along that my dad was the one training me!"

"So it seems you've finally found out. That makes my job that much easier. To answer your question, of course I knew who your father was to begin with. He's my son after all. I've been keeping an eye on him ever since your grandfather allegedly died when he was 7 years old. I know what your father has been up to for the past few months."

"If you knew why didn't you tell me when we first met?"

"Think about it Boruto. If I had told you back then that your master was in reality your father, do you think you would have gotten to know him the way you did over the past few months. I'm sure you already had a negative stigma towards your father to begin with since you were raised by your mother alone. You did not have any idea what kind of person he was aside from the fact that he was never around. Yet after having spent time with your father and getting to know him personally, can you say you still feel the same way?"

Boruto was taken aback by his grandmother's questioning. She was right. Had she told him who his father was from the start, he may not have been able to get to know him and spend all the fun times together as they had done.

"I can guess that you're probably not very happy with him for not telling you who he truly was, but you have to think of it from his perspective as well. He wanted to get close to you, the son he never got to see ever since your birth. He wanted you to give him a chance to prove how much you truly meant to him. Yet at the same time this would have been difficult or borderline impossible if you and by proxy your mother found out about his presence from the get to. He couldn't risk your mother running away with you once again after it took so many years of searching for him to find you two. However the story now may very well be quite different concerning you and your father, don't you think Boruto?"

The young boy looked down and thought hard about his father's actions and they started to make some sense. It's not that Boruto had completely accepted them but at the very least he understood his father's point of view and what he was trying to accomplish; most importantly the fact that he meant well.

"In any case Boruto, the reason why I'm here is to continue once more from where we left of. Before I left I told you about your parents' stories and the choices they made that led to their separation. I asked you to think about whose side you would take when it finally came down to it. At the time the question was too hard for you to answer, but now that you've had the chance to get to know your father and think about what both of your parents mean to you, I want to ask that same question again. I know this is difficult but we really are pressed for time at this point. I want to know your decision Boruto. Who will you side with – your father or your mother, knowing the idealistic and realistic viewpoints that they each represent?" Kushina asked to her grandson with the utmost seriousness in her voice.

Boruto had thought hard about this and the answer was already clear as day to him. Thus he shook his head side to side in response. "I don't know who was right, my mother or my father. Honestly I don't really understand most of this stuff because it's too complicated, but I do know one thing for sure – I can't and I won't choose between my parents. I love them both, but more importantly they love each other more than anything else. They belong with one another. That much I know for sure. And so my decision is that I want to reunite the two of them so that we can all be a happy family together."

Kushina simply smiled at her grandson's response. "I was hoping you'd say that Boruto. That was the answer I was looking for."

"W-What?" Boruto was shocked by her admission as he was sure she would hound him to make a choice between his parents.

"You're absolutely right. Your parents do belong together. Even after so many years their feelings for each other have not diminished as you probably found out first hand; they simply remain dormant. The two of them need each other now more so than ever before to face their common enemy. That is why I've been busy planning for this very moment, the moment of their reconciliation. But for this to work I need your help. A long time ago your parents separated because of the difference in viewpoints they had regarding you. But now you Boruto will be the key that will link them back together once more." Kushina stated with the utmost confidence and extended her hand towards her grandson. "So what do you say my dear grandson? Will you join me in reuniting your parents once more? If we join forces, together we will most certainly succeed."

Boruto didn't hesitate for a second. He wanted nothing more than to see his parents back together like in the stories he had heard of them as a team, and most importantly as a couple. As such he placed his hand on top of his grandmother's in order to team up with her to achieve their one ultimate goal…

The reunion of Naruto and Hinata.

* * *

And so Boruto finally makes his decision regarding his parents. Next chapter will be "Naruto's Confession" and it will be big in its own way. What do you guys think this confession will be? I'd love to know your thoughts and see who hits the nail on the head as always.

Response to the last chapter was very interesting in that most of you were very split whether you liked the idea of a yandere Hinata or not, probably just as much as I was when I first came up with it. There is a reason why I never did end up writing it. In any case it was a fun little diversion before we head into the final stretch here.

That is all I have for today and I will see you all next time.


	30. Naruto's Confession

**Naruto's Confession**

* * *

Hinata stood in front of her house with Houka next to her. She had called her counterpart back to have a serious talk with her.

"What's the matter princess? Why did you want me here? Shouldn't I be watching over Boruto, especially given the current state of circumstances?" Houka said to her original self, given that she was legitimately concerned about Boruto at all times.

"Yes, I wanted to talk to you about that. You won't have to look out for him from here on out, so you can return to me at once."

Houka's eyes widened as she was quite shocked at the order she was given. "But princess, you understand the situation we're in right? That man named Tobi is after Boruto and there is always the threat of Kumogakure shinobi if we're not careful. Surely I should be looking out for him at all times."

"There is no need for you to worry. I'll take care of that myself from here on out."

"But princess…" Before Houka could finish, Hinata dispelled her out of existence and absorbed her remnants.

An absolute ton of memories of her counterpart from the past few months flowed back into Hinata and most of it was just watching Boruto go about doing his daily activities. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, yet there was something odd. Hinata just couldn't touch it.

In reality this was due to the small parts of her memories of Boruto's interactions with Naruto that Houka had sealed away, but given how well she had overwritten them, it was difficult to for Hinata to decipher the cause of the unsettling feeling. As such Hinata decided to overlook the matter and carried on with her next course of action in order to get to the bottom of her son's recent erratic behaviour.

 **Elsewhere…**

Boruto was in the park discussing with his grandmother the plan to reunite his parents.

"So how are you actually gonna get them back together?" Boruto asked curiously. "It'll be pretty tough."

"I know. That is why I've been setting up according to my plan to achieve that very goal. You remember not too long ago you were visiting another village with your father right? During that trip your father ended up fighting a masked man who wanted to capture you. That masked person was in fact his brother, in other words your uncle and I was the one who ordered him to attack your father."

"W-What!? Why!?" Boruto's eyes widened in disbelief at what he was hearing. "Did my father know who he was actually fighting?"

"Of course not. He doesn't even know that I'm alive; let alone the existence of a brother. The reason why I made your uncle attack your father under the alias of the masked man, Tobi was to set us up as the bad guys. You don't know this but we also did the same thing with your mother. It was a while back but you and your mother were headed to a festival in a village nearby when you lost consciousness out of the blue. That was in fact your mother knocking you out cold since she felt your grandfather approaching and didn't want you get involved in any way. The two of them had a severe confrontation in which she came out on top, just as we had planned. He also fought under the same alias of the masked man, Tobi and set himself up as a serious threat to your mother. In both instances, Tobi fought your parents under the pretence of capturing you Boruto. That is key."

Boruto looked both shocked and confused. "I don't understand. Why do you want to be the bad guys? And why would you go so far just to pretend to capture me?"

"Think about it for a second Boruto. What is the one thing both of your parents care about even more than themselves? The one reason they separated in the first place? It was you Boruto. You above everything else can make or break your parent's relationship. Just as your parents may have separated a long time ago because of the disagreements they had regarding you, the one thing they will reunite over is also going to be you. They both love you with all their heart and will do anything to protect you, even if that means setting aside their differences to save you from their one common enemy."

Suddenly it was all starting to make sense to the young boy and he understood his grandmother's plan a bit, as crazy as it sounded at first.

"So you see Boruto, we set up Tobi as the one singular evil that sought to take away that which is most precious to them both – the product of their love, their very child. Hence when that threat becomes too big for either one of them to easily overcome on their own, they will have no choice but to depend on one another once more just as they did many years ago as part of Team Zero. And once they remember what it meant to be team, a husband and wife and parents working together to protect their child, it will finally bring them to the path towards reunion. That is my plan Boruto and we have already set it all in motion. Now all we need is the final piece to make it succeed. And that final piece is you Boruto. Our success lies completely upon your shoulders, my dear grandson. I understand that it must be difficult watching your parents involved in such conflict, but this really is the only way we could think of. So I ask you once more, will you lend us your assistance?" Kushina requested earnestly after having explained the plan she had been building up to all along, hoping that her grandson would understand the ulterior motives behind their actions.

Boruto remained in deep thought for a while, trying his best to digest everything he had heard. It was all a bit too much for a child of his age to comprehend, but he understood this much that if anyone could bring his parents back together, it would be him. Thus throwing all of his hesitations to the wind he agreed to collaborate with his Kushina's plan in order to reunite his parents. "Alright grandma, I'm in. So what do I need to do? How do we do this?"

"Perfect! I'm really glad to hear that. For the time being I want you to keep this plan a secret from both of your parents because if they knew who were it would obviously not work out. Right now we are waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike when all the stars have aligned, so to speak. When that time arrives your grandfather will approach you and ask you to come along with him. All you need to do is go along with him. You may not have met your grandfather yet but you'll know it's him just by how closely he resembles your father. It'll appear as though we're kidnapping you from your parents but as I explained earlier, it'll hopefully force the two of them to work together to get you back. Or at least that is the plan. Does it all make sense?"

Boruto nodded in response.

"In that case I will have to get going. Time is of the essence. But it was nice talking to you again my dear grandson. I would have preferred for the two of us to sit together and have a more fun light-hearted conversation, but if all goes according to plan we'll be able to do just that sometime soon. Until then Boruto, I will see you when it is time to enact our plan." Kushina embraced her grandson in a gentle hug which he reciprocated. "Thank you for helping us Boruto. Take care of yourself and let's bring your family back together once again."

Thus after saying her farewells, Kushina left, leaving Boruto in both a state of anxiety of what was to come but hopefulness at the same time of a better future where he would have both of his parents next to him at the same time. That is the one thing that he wished for above all else right now. As such Boruto returned home to spend an otherwise uneventful rest of the week, until the very last day of the week arrived.

 **Sunday evening…**

This was the day that his father promised to meet Boruto in order to make an extremely important confession, or so he said. The young boy wanted to know exactly what his father intended to tell him that he was so deadly serious about. It sent his heart racing just thinking about the possibilities. The last couple of days ever since his meeting with his grandmother had been a roller coaster ride of emotions while wondering about his parent's reunion and how that would possibly come about. Regardless the young boy composed himself and left the house out under the pretence of going to play with his friends as always but in reality headed to Naruto's mansion. After a while of walking the usual beaten path, Boruto arrived at his destination and rang the bell next to the front doors of the huge establishment.

Within seconds Naruto opened the doors and seemed dressed to head out. His body language was a little different than usual though, seeming a bit fidgety, and his general outward demeanour made it appear as though he was nervous for whatever reason. It was quite a far cry from the usual confident nature of his teacher that Boruto was used to seeing.

"I was expecting you Boruto. Let us head out. I would like you to come to the hilltop with me today." Naruto wasted no time and shut the doors behind him before heading up the hill that his mansion was located in. It was a pretty steep climb through the dense woods that grew along the side of the hill but this was a path they travelled many times before for their training. In the beginning Naruto would carry Boruto to the top on his shoulders, but Boruto was now sufficiently trained enough to follow his master through the treetops on his own while also maintaining a brisk pace. Thus, before long the two reached the large and spacious grassy field at the summit.

This place was all too familiar to the two of them. Over the past few months Naruto would bring Boruto here on a regular basis in order to train him. It was a wide open area and secluded from other human presence, just the perfect place to practice one's ninja arts. Yet at the same time there was this feeling of tranquillity that emanated from this location as a soft wind constantly wafted through the field, almost having the effect of slowly draining away the tension of those who chose to visit the area. As such it was also the perfect place for relaxation while looking up at the azure blue sky.

Naruto sat down in the middle of the field on top of a nice patch of grass and invited Boruto to do the same. The young boy agreed and sat down beside his master in anticipation of what he wanted to tell him.

"It has been a while hasn't it Boruto since we first met? It feels like it was just yesterday, yet months have passed in the blink of an eye. This place has become almost like our private training grounds. Despite coming here so often it was always for training purposes and we never really did visit just to relax." Naruto took a moment to remember all the fond memories of the time he got to spend with his son, the one who he couldn't be with ever since his birth. Those moments had become some of his most precious memories. But above all he had come to understand the feeling of being a parent, what it meant to have a father-son relationship and the happiness it brings to one's heart to see their child grow in front of them. Naruto wanted those feelings, those experiences to never go away. That is why he was hesitant, almost afraid of what he was about to say. Even though he was someone who believed in never giving up, there was a part of him that was afraid of what would happen if he were to be rejected once more.

Many years ago when he lost his father, Naruto was in a miserable state. He felt like there was no hope and that he could never recover from that loss of the most precious person to him. When all hope seemed to be lost, Hinata entered his life and took the position of his most precious person. Through her he gained a new hope and a will to move forward to achieve his dreams. Yet all of those dreams would eventually come crumbling down when Hinata also left him. At that time Naruto felt that this was a loss that he could never recover from either. To lose the most precious person from his life not once but twice was far too painful to bear. As such he could not allow that to happen, not at any cost. He refused to give up. As such he relentlessly chased after Hinata, unyielding in his goal no matter how insurmountable it may have seemed so that he could right the wrongs that had took place between them.

Despite having the will to never give up on his word, those thoughts and the feeling of losing the most precious people in his life brought about a feeling of fear and hesitation in his mind. What if Boruto did not accept who he truly was? What if he rejected him completely? Would he lose yet another one of his most precious people? Would he never get to truly be a father?

Those doubts plagued his mind and stopped him from being able to utter the words that he wished to speak until a warm touch on his shoulder snapped him out of his trance. He turned his head to see Boruto's hand on his shoulder as a form of support with a concerned look on the boy's face.

"Are you okay? If there's anything that's troubling you then you can tell me. It may not seem like I'll be able to do much but I promise I'll do my best to help." Boruto sincerely offered his help towards his master, one who had helped him in turn when he needed it most.

Boruto's thought alone brought a form a solace over Naruto's mind and gave him the courage confront the young boy about the truth that he wished to convey all along. Thus Naruto turned to face him directly and took his hand from his shoulder and held it between both of his own. He was determined that the time to tell the truth was now.

"Boruto, there is something I have to tell you that is of the utmost important. I know that you may not want to forgive me after what I'm about to tell you, but I want you to at least listen to what I have to say. There is a reason why I've kept this information from you ever since we met but I believe now is the time I told you the truth. You see Boruto…" Naruto took in a deep breath and braced himself. "I am…I am…I am…"

But the final words just wouldn't come out. For the very first time in his life, Naruto couldn't bring himself to say what he wanted to say. As such he took yet one more deep breath and gave it another shot. "You see B-Boruto…I am…y-you-your…f…"

Yet again he just couldn't finish the sentence no matter how hard he tried. It was as though an overwhelming weight was holding him from uttering that one final word – _father_.

NO! – Naruto thought. Now was not the time to hesitate. If he wanted his family back, this was one hurdle he would have to overcome at all costs. This was it! It was now or never! Thus he conjured up every ounce of determination within his body in order to say that one word that absolutely needed to be said and finally confess the truth.

"Boruto! I am your…F-F-F-F-FA-"

"Father." Boruto finished the sentence for his father.

"YES! I AM YOUR FATHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER!" Naruto closed his eyes and screamed at the top of his lungs as though for the entire world to hear.

He had done it now. He finally said it. Now he would have to face the consequences.

Or so he thought before realising the word that his son had just said before he even made his confession. He looked at his son wide-eyed and in disbelief. "Eh? W-Wait Boruto, what did you just say before what I just said?"

"Father?" Boruto replied in a casual tone.

"W-What?" Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing and needed another confirmation.

"The fact that you are my father – that's what I said before you just confirmed it right afterwards."

Naruto's jaw almost literally hit the floor. "Y-You knew!?"

"Of course I knew."

"What!? But how!? That should be impossible! I never told you!"

"I found out last week when we were playing hide and seek in your mansion during my birthday. While I was hiding in your closet I logged into your laptop and saw your and mama's marriage photos as well as a video of her announcing that she was pregnant to you."

It was one shock after another, but after hearing that explanation it finally made sense to Naruto why his son ran away so abruptly last week. The seemingly earth shattering news he was going to give him, his son already discovered last week on his own and it was only natural for him to react in such a confused manner after finding out that truth. Now it all made sense.

"Wow I can't believe I went through so much tension and almost had a mental breakdown trying to tell you that one piece of information, yet you already knew about it. Life can be pretty crazy sometimes huh?" Yet at the same time a new query popped up within Naruto's mind. Would Boruto accept him as his father? That was the final question left to be answered at this point. Thus Naruto confronted his son directly on the matter. "I know you have many questions and I promise to answer them all Boruto. I truly do. And I also know that you are probably really mad at me for not telling you that I was your father from the very beginning and even lying to you about it. But I ask…no I beg you to give me a chance. Above all, I want you to know that all my actions had only one singular purpose – so that I could have both you and your mother back, so that the three of us could be one happy family together once again. You may hate me for not being there for you since you were born, but believe me when I say this Boruto that not being there in your life as your father has been one of my greatest regrets. If I could I would go back and change the past, but I can't. I can only look to right the wrongs of the past in order to build a better future. So all I can say right now is that I love both you and your mother with all my heart. The two of you are the most precious people in my life and I'm willing to do anything to have you both back. That has been my one and only dream ever since your mother left and I refuse to give up on that dream at all costs. Therefore, even though I know it is too much to ask for your forgiveness after everything that has happened, I hope that you give your father a chance Boruto – a chance to be able to rectify everything so that we can all be together again." Naruto said with the utmost sincerity before closing his eyes and praying that his son felt the same way as he did and wanted him in his life just as he wanted him.

"It's okay. I forgive you…Otou-chan."

Those words…for the very first time in his life, Boruto had called him father. Naruto opened his eyes to look at his son who held towards him an emphatic thumbs up and a large grin across his face, one that was almost a carbon copy of his father's. Boruto's smile brought tears to Naruto's eyes as he simply could not hold in his emotions any longer. Thus he grasped his son in the tightest hug he had ever given anyone, now for the very first time truly as his father.

"Thank you…my dear son." Those were the only words he could utter as he cried his eyes out without being able to hold anything back. The joy of being recognised by his son as his father was too much for Naruto to bear. That feeling of happiness of embracing his child, the one that he missed out for 8 long years ever since his son was born, it was coming to him all at once and it was just too overwhelming. The only other time Naruto had ever cried like this was when Hinata had come to his aid right after he lost his father and comforted him when the entire village had turned on him. Thus it was only fitting that it would be Boruto this time, their son, who would get him to open up his emotions in that same manner.

Quite some time passed before Naruto was once again able to gain hold of his emotions once more and during all this time he held his son in a tight embrace and did not let go. Boruto diligently hugged his father back as well, not only giving him support but also appreciating his father's embrace.

But as soon as they separated Boruto punched his father square in the gut with every ounce of power he had, one that left Naruto gasping and short of breath.

"W-What was that for?" He asked while still recovering from the hit, which shockingly packed quite the punch for an 8 year old.

"You may not remember but on the first day of our training you asked me what I would do when I first met my father and I said that I would punch him in the gut with everything I had. That was me keeping my own promise."

Naruto smiled in response as he finally regained his composure once more. "Touché. I remember making a mental note that I would let you punch me in the gut when that time finally came, so I guess I kept my end of the bargain as well."

Both father and son started laughing at the silly exchange of promises that they made to themselves.

"Boruto, I truly am sorry for not being there for you." Naruto reiterated once more in a remorseful tone.

"There is no need for you to be sorry. As I already said, I forgive you. But there is one thing that you absolutely must do as compensation for that forgiveness."

"Anything Boruto. I will do whatever it takes."

"You HAVE to get back together with Okaa-chan somehow and you are not allowed to fail, not at any cost!" Boruto gave an absolute order to his father knowing all too well at this point how much his parents deep down loved one another. "You promise, right?

It took a second for Naruto to fully comprehend what his son just asked of him and nodded emphatically before holding forward his fist towards him. "I promise, and I never go back on my word because that is my ninja way!"

Boruto nodded back enthusiastically in approval as both father and son shared a heartfelt fist bump.

Thus Boruto finally got the father that he always wanted and Naruto gained back the son he had long lost.

All was well…or so it seemed.

Because at that moment unbeknownst to both father and son there were two all-seeing eyes that were observing their every action from far, far away. Those eyes – they belonged to Hinata Hyuga and she unlike Boruto would not be so forgiving.

* * *

Here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for. And of course in typical fashion I will be ending it on that very note. Was that cliffhanger the best one yet or was it the best one yet?

Last time you all found out **Boruto's Decision** and this time you heard **Naruto's Confession**. Next time you will witness _**Hinata's Indignation**_.

I would love to know your thoughts on this chapter and how you think/want the finale to play out. This is it, the end to this whole saga draws near!

That is all for today. Be well and I will see you all next time!


	31. Hinata's Indignation

**Hinata's Indignation**

* * *

Having finally revealed the truth to Boruto, Naruto felt as though a great burden had been lifted from his shoulder. He could talk to his son openly now without fear of giving away his identity. It couldn't be described in words how great it was for him to finally be acknowledged as a father for the very first time. It was almost a bit too unbelievable.

"Boruto, will you really forgive me for not being there as your father for all these years?" He asked once more for clarification.

"Sure, as I said, I forgive you as long as you keep your end of the bargain and make up with mama." Boruto replied casually.

"Wow…I can't explain in words how happy I am right now. To think that you'd accept me as your father, I'm really lost for words. There were so many times ever since I first met you Boruto that I wanted to tell you who I truly was, but I had to refrain myself. I feared that if I had told you at the very beginning, you'd reject me simply because I wasn't there for you since your birth and you wouldn't even get to know me as a person. So I waited until we got to spend more time together, but even now I was very nervous that it might have all gone wrong. I just couldn't bear the thought of losing yet another one of my family."

"Well, I always wanted to know who my dad was as well. I was jealous of all the other kids who had both of their parents. Once we started to spend all the fun times together, before even realising it I secretly started thinking this is exactly how I always wanted to have a father-son relationship. So when I finally found out that you were indeed my father, at first I was a bit shocked and even mad that you didn't tell me earlier, but the more I thought about it the more I realised how lucky I was. What I wished for came true. I know now for sure that you're a good person and someone I'd be proud to call my father. That is why I want to trust you. Despite what happened between you and mama in the past, I know that you still love her and she loves you too. So you have to do everything you can to get her back."

Naruto nodded emphatically after hearing his son's explanation. "I promise Boruto. I promise that I'll working things out with your mother no matter what. I promise that I'll protect you both, always, from here on out. And my promise is my bond."

Boruto nodded back, putting all his faith in his father. "So, what's your plan, ero-jiji?"

"You're still referring to me in such base manner? You realise that I'm your father right?"

"Oh yeah that's true. I guess I can't call you ero-jiji anymore. That doesn't quite fit. How about ero-oyaji?" Boruto suggested with a mischievous grin which prompted Naruto to make a grab for him, but with the swiftness of a ninja the young boy jumped away with ease.

"Get back here you little punk! I think it's about time I gave you a little punishment and disciplined you as your father!"

Thus both father and son became embroiled in a silly goose chase that would go on for a while. To them this was a way of catching up on all the times they had missed out on being able to play together.

 **Elsewhere…**

There was one person who did not share that same jolly outlook right now. Hinata was in shock and awe from what she saw through her Byakugan from afar. After all these years, there he was…Naruto.

Just the sight of him made far too many emotions flare within her, so many in fact that it was as though her entire existence had been thrown into turmoil. Seeing Naruto interacting with their son was unbelievable. For a short moment, there was some part of her that felt warm seeing father and son playing together for the very first time. Yet that softness of her heart was overwhelmed completely by what could only be described as cold, unfeeling anger as all the sealed memories of Houka became available to Hinata and she realised what had truly been going on for all this time behind her back.

Not only was Boruto meeting his father for months in secret, Naruto had been training him in the ninja arts ever since. The very life that Hinata kept secret from her son in order to protect him, Naruto thrust him back into it full force. If this wasn't enough, Hinata also realised that the part time work that she had been doing at the mansion was in fact for Naruto. It was as though he was showing her pity and found a way to donate money to her because she was living in a financially tight situation. It essentially made a mockery of all the sacrifices Hinata had made over the years and worked to the bone to live a modest life with her son all so that she could keep him safe from the darkness of her past. Yet Naruto just waltz right in and undermined everything that she made a stand for all those years ago. To be lied to in this manner and all the deceitful actions fuelled the flames of anger within her further and further until it reached nearly a boiling point.

Yet what shocked her most perhaps were the actions of one of her very counterparts – Houka, who possessed a part of Hinata's psyche. She was essentially betrayed by her own self, who kept this all a secret from her and allowed it to carry on for as long as it did. That fact was unfathomable to Hinata. Thus she summoned both her counterparts, the Leopard and the Tiger at the same time.

As soon as she was summoned, Houka knew she was in deep trouble. She wanted to explain that the reason she acted the way she did was because of the feelings for Naruto that Hinata had buried away deep within her, and those feelings were reflected heavily onto Houka. But Hinata of course would never accept that as her anger and resentment towards Naruto's actions completely overwhelmed those deep rooted emotions right now.

"Princess-"

Before she could say a single more word, Hinata forcefully shoved her hand within Houka's ethereal body and crushed something within, suppressing all of Houka's individuality in a moment's notice and leaving her as a husk of her formal self – a mere puppet whose only purpose would be to obey Hinata's every command without question.

"To think what was once just a mere clone of myself would betray me in this manner, it seems I granted you far more lenience than I ever should have. That is why you will return to fulfilling your true role – the one of an unfeeling, emotionless clone that obeys my absolute will." Hinata stated in a cold hearted voice as she nullified all of her past efforts in developing Houka into what she was today and the individuality that she had once granted her. Yet there was a deeper dichotomy in Hinata's current actions that was due to her denial of the idea that whatever her clone had done was in fact what she wished for somewhere deep down, even if that was being completely overshadowed by her rage at this moment. That conflict, the one that was the biggest hurdle Hinata had to face when she first decided to run away from Konoha and leave Naruto was once again starting to weigh in heavily on her psyche. Despite that, Hinata shrugged off that immense mental stress and glared at the sight of her husband.

"I'm going in!" Yuki, the counterpart that shared the other side of Hinata's conscience was also seething in anger from Naruto's deceptive actions and was ready to jump into the fray to exact retribution. Before she could do that however, Hinata raised a hand to the side and stopped her in her tracks.

"STOP! NOT YET! NOT RIGHT NOW!" Hinata growled in a low yet deep tone, one that instantly told Yuki that her original self was deadly serious.

"What do you intend to do, true self?"

Hinata watched every single one of Naruto's moves like a hawk and witnessed him finally take his leave from Boruto for the day. It was during this moment that Hinata knew what absolutely had to be done. "There is no point in engaging him at this point in time. I have to make preparations first. I left unfinished business with him all those years ago, but soon everything will finally come to an end."

Thus with that ominous statement, Hinata along with her clones turned away and left the area.

 **After some time…**

Boruto was filled with joy as he skipped back home happily after finally having established a relation with his long lost father. It was in fact one of the happiest days of his life. If only he could share it with his mother, but alas that just wasn't meant to be, at least for now. However he believed that his father would make everything right over time.

As he approached his house, that positivity was suddenly overtaken by an unsettling feeling. He couldn't pinpoint what it was but something just did not feel right to the young boy. Boruto opened the door to his house and slowly tiptoed his way inside only to find his mother sitting on the sofa with her hands clasped together and head down, clearly awaiting his arrival. Yet something felt completely off about her.

"K-Kaa-chan…"

"Where were you?" Hinata cut into whatever her son was about to say like a knife through butter, still looking down on the floor.

"I-I…" Boruto stammered in his speech due to a feeling that could only be described as fear. And it wasn't just some petty fear of being punished by his mother. This was the kind of fear ninjas felt when they were in the presence of someone far more overwhelming than themselves.

"I will not repeat myself again. Give me a straight and truthful answer. Where were you?"

"P-Playing with my f-frien-" Boruto stuttered before his sentence was cut short abruptly once more.

"DON'T YOU DARE LIE TO ME!" Hinata shouted at the top of her lungs, an action that was completely uncharacteristic of her and one that caused Boruto to drop on to his back out of shock.

It was at this moment that Boruto also got to look directly into his mother's eyes and saw her Byakugan fully active. He had never seen his mother activate her Byakugan before apart from that one time where the two of them escaped several Konoha shinobi right before he met his father. At the time Boruto had no idea why his mother's eyes suddenly looked so different, but now that he had access to the Byakugan himself, he understood very well. To see his mother with her Byakugan active, which would normally be used in battle or to scout enemies was a truly bad premonition to what was to come.

Hinata stepped forward towards Boruto and for the very first time in his life the young boy was legitimately afraid of his mother, as the loving aura around her was completely gone, replaced by something far more vicious. This was a side of her that Boruto did not know existed.

Hinata now towered over her son with a harsh glare. "This will be your last chance. Tell me the truth, or else…"

Hinata's ultimatum sounded so cold and sinister that Boruto didn't even have the courage to look back at her, let alone be able to lie to her. It was evident that she had found out the truth. There was no hiding it now. Thus he had no choice but to get back up on his feet and tell the truth.

"I was meeting…dad."

Instantly Boruto felt the hard impact of the back of his mother's hand across his face. The slap was so strong in fact that it left a red imprint on the boy's face.

"For months on end you lied to my face and met up with that man behind my back. You made a mockery out of my trust and unconditional love for you. You deceived your very mother!" Hinata yelled at her son's face, the tone of her voice filled with venom.

At this point Boruto was truly frightened and tears filled up his eyes. "Mama…I'm…I'm sorry. You're…scaring me."

Hinata took a step back and placed some distance between them in response, but her grim outlook remained unchanged. "If saying sorry solved all problems then there would be no wars and the shinobi would be a peaceful kind. It seems that your father has fed you these fantasies of living the life of a shinobi, but you hardly understand the reality – the one that I sacrificed everything to escape from…to protect you!"

Even though her actions on the surface seemed borderline terrifying, Boruto remembered the stories that his grandmother had told him in regards to the many sacrifices his mother had made in order to protect him. That is why once he took a moment to look more deeply into his mother's eyes, he could see that beyond the veil of anger that shrouded it, there was definitely the sign of a great pain buried deep within – the pain of losing that which was once most precious to her. And now that he was the one who had become her most precious person, his deceitful actions hurt her far more than ever before. She was ultimately scared of losing him.

Boruto also remembered what he had told his grandmother, the fact that he loved both of his parents and would not choose between them. That would absolutely be the case for his mother, the one who was there for him through thick and thin. Even if she had hurt him beyond repair, Boruto could never go against her, because he understood her pain. He understood that there was no one else in the world that meant more to his mother than him. And he felt the same way. But he also knew that there was one other person in the world that his mother loved equally and he wanted her to recognise that love once more.

"I know that you still love him deep down. That is why…I don't want you to keep suffering any longer."

Those words, they struck deep within Hinata and only served to make her inner turmoil even more turbulent. "What do you know about me? Don't talk like you understand my pain!"

"How am I supposed to know if you don't ever tell me?"

Hinata contemplated for a second before nodding at her son. "Very well then, listen carefully. Many years ago before you were born, the reason why I left your father was because his enemies wished to see both him and you dead due to your lineage as an Uzumaki, a clan that was once known as the strongest in the shinobi world. At that time the situation was so dire that I had no choice but to run away from the village where we lived. You see, the shinobi are a violent kind who will stop at nothing for power and vengeance, even if it means killing their own brethren within the village in which they live. I didn't want to take any chances and lose you to this never ending cycle of pain and revenge. That is why I decided to leave everything behind – my family, my loved ones, my status, my identity, everything, just to ensure your safety. You meant more to me than all of that. I valued you more than my very life. To keep you safe, I was willing to go to any lengths necessary. And I expected the same from your father, but to my shock and horror he defied those expectations. I pleaded him, begged him to come with me so that we could escape and the three of us could live a peaceful life together far away from the influence of the shinobi. I didn't just run away without any rhyme or reason, I wanted with all my heart for him to come with me. Yet he didn't. He was set in his ways to change the very core of the village. He believed he could live up to his father's legacy and rectify the shinobi system itself, as unreasonable as it seemed. Once upon a time I would have believed in those grandiose assertions of his and dedicated my very life to help him achieve that goal, since I appreciated his will to never give up on his dreams. But this time was different. It was no longer just about the two of us. It was also about you. And as your mother I couldn't be so irresponsible as to put your life in danger for the sake of some fantastical dream. I weighed in on the reality while your father wanted to follow his ideals. And therein was the point we went our separate ways. I couldn't convince him to join me despite all my begging and pleading. To me it seemed as though your father did not value us above the village. He was unwilling to sacrifice his ideals for us. And thus here we are. Eight years have passed since then where I chose to sacrifice my past life as a shinobi all for you Boruto, when your father didn't. Yet now he suddenly wishes to come back and make it seem as though nothing has changed? PREPOSTEROUS! I will never accept that to be the case! I will not allow my sacrifices to be in vain!"

"But he promised to protect us. I want to believe in that promise." Boruto replied back gingerly after hearing his mother's account of the reasons behind her actions which were all geared towards protecting him. She had been and was still to this day selfless, always thinking about her child above herself. That made it incredibly difficult for Boruto to backtalk towards her, but he wanted her to finally be set free from that burden and think a little bit for herself.

"Vague promises as that cannot be relied upon."

"I don't care." Boruto retaliated. "I trust him. And you have to trust him too."

"That is not a choice for you to make. You haven't lived half the life that I have lived. You haven't seen the nature of the shinobi. You have no idea how this world works. As such I'm the one who gets to make the decisions and my decision is absolute. I will do what is best for the two of us whether you like it or not."

"Please Kaa-chan, you have to give him just one chance. I want our family to be back together again. I want you to be happy with the person you lov-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Hinata cut him off abruptly. "I've heard more than enough! Your father will be back in a week's time to meet you as usual. That is when we will settle this matter once and for all. Until then you will remain locked up in this house and contemplate on your every action thus far. Believe me when I say, this will all come to an end when your father and I come face to face."

Leaving behind that final ultimatum for Boruto to ponder upon, Hinata exited the house and placed a seal upon it that would stop him from being able to escape in order to prepare for her confrontation with Naruto in a week's time.

 **Several days later…**

It was deep in the middle of the night. Konoha was in slumber, but as the saying goes, there was no rest for the weary.

Within the Uchiha compound the masked man was making preparations to finally complete his most important mission, one that has been ongoing for many years – to bring about the end to the Uzumaki once and for all. But alas, in trying to achieve that goal, his body was nearly at its breaking point.

Before he could set out on his final mission, intense pain overwhelmed every inch of his body and he came crashing down on to his knees as he coughed up several mouthful of blood. The burning pain would have broken down any normal person, but he endured it all in order to fulfil his ultimate objective.

"A-Are you okay!?" The masked man's accomplice asked in shock from seeing him in such a sorry state. "You shouldn't move. Your condition is worsening."

But the masked man forced himself back on to his feet with some help from his accomplice. "I'm fine. This is all to be expected. All those years of overuse of the Mangekyou Sharingan is finally coming back to haunt me. This is the price that needs to be paid in return for that power."

"You're in no condition to head out to battle. At this rate you'll…"

"Yes, I'll die. That part is inevitable. But I have to complete my mission before my eyesight completely deteriorates." The masked man blinked his eyes several times, but alas, at this point he could barely even make out the face of his accomplice. He was nearing complete blindness. "This will be my end, but I will have played my part in furthering the Uchiha's purpose. After that it will be up to you to carry on your ancestor's work. Remember – Madara's will must be fulfilled!"

With that final reminder to his successor, the masked man collapsed under the weight of the burden he carried and lost consciousness.

* * *

Just one more chapter until the showdown between Naruto and Hinata. But before that, next chapter will focus on the Uchiha and the reveal of the masked man. Therefore, this time I leave you with one question - who do you think the masked man is from everything that you know thus far?

Other than that, what else can I say? It's about to get real! Are you excited to see Naruto and Hinata face off? I've had their entire confrontation planned for months and I can't wait for you all to read it. If you remember from while back, I asked you guys on a scale of 1-10 how big you wanted the collision between Naruto and Hinata to be. Well hopefully you can see now that we're headed towards a grade 10 Richter scale collision of unreal proportions and next chapter will be big in setting up that confrontation.

 **Guest 8, SpicyWifey, gio08, NarHina, Deadly-DeathStar:** I should thank you all for showing appreciation to last week's massive cliffhanger...or finding it mean (I take that as a compliment lol). I take great pride in my cliffhanging skills haha!

 **CainOmega106:** Do not worry my friend, there will definitely be back and forth between both sides. It will most certainly not be one sided by any means.

 **Erosdeath:** Actually you raise a very interesting point. I guess it wouldn't have been unreasonable with all the craziness Hinata went through for her to have a miscarriage. But Boruto is a Uzumaki-Hyuga hybrid. Even as an embryo he was a beast! And that leads me to...

 **petran:** Long live the Hyuga conspiracy indeed. Everything will indeed be according to keikaku.

That is all for now. Until next time, let me know your thoughts and I hope to see you all then.


	32. The Masked Man

**The Masked Man**

* * *

 **The next day in Konoha…**

It was Friday afternoon. Classes were over for the week and Sarada just arrived back at the Uchiha compound. Today in particular she was incredibly excited coming back since earlier this morning she had finally mastered one of her clan's signature techniques after months of practice. And as luck would have it, she spotted just the person she was hoping to meet as soon as she arrived back – her father.

Sarada had a rather distant relationship with Sasuke, mainly due to how stern and emotionless he tended to be, but she saw this as a perfect opportunity to impress her father and get his approval. As such she ran towards him at full speed.

"Father!" She called out to him enthusiastically.

Unlike her however, Sasuke did not share in that enthusiasm. In fact he seemed bothered to be stopped and looked at his daughter with a disapproving gaze. "What do you want? Make it quick. I'm busy here."

Seeing his response Sarada couldn't help but feel a little deflated, but she refused to let it get her down completely. "Father, I've finally mastered the fireball jutsu and I'd love to show it to you! Would you please accompany me for a bit?"

Sasuke's disapproving gaze instantly turned into one of annoyance. "I thought I just told you that I'm busy and yet you're making these silly requests. I don't have time to oversee every little achievement of yours. The fireball technique is one of the most basic ones in our clan. Learning it is nothing to be touting your horns about. Don't bother me about such minor achievements in the future. Now, I've got to be somewhere, so I'll be taking my leave."

Sasuke completely dismissed his daughter's request and left, making her feel terrible about herself for being happy achieving what according to her father was nothing spectacular to begin with. No matter what she did, it seemed the rift between her and her father kept getting bigger and bigger, and she just didn't know what to do to gain his approval.

At that moment Sarada felt someone's hand on her shoulder and she turned around to find her uncle Shisui standing behind her.

"Yo Sarada!" Shisui greeted his niece with a smile. "I couldn't help but overhear that conversation as I was passing by. Did you really master the fireball technique? That's amazing for someone your age. I don't think even I quite got the hang of it until I was older than you and they said I was pretty good for my age. You're doing even better!"

Even though Sarada was feeling down on herself, her uncle's words brought back some of her self-confidence and enthusiasm. "R-Really? You really think so?"

"Of course! You know what, I'd love to be able to see your fireball technique. Will you show it to me? Maybe I can even give you a few tips on how to improve it."

"I'd love to!" Sarada replied happily, forgetting about her father's harsh words.

Thus the two headed over to the rather large lake at the back of the compound as it provided with an open area ideal for practicing ninja arts.

Sarada stepped forward to the edge of the lake as Shisui watched from behind. She remembered the many days of hard work and felt confident in her ability to produce a good result. She inhaled a large amount of air in one quick breath that filled up her lungs to the brim and immediately exhaled all of it out in another fell swoop, igniting it into a large flaming orb.

"FIRE RELEASE: FIREBALL JUTSU!" Sarada's fireball was several times larger than her and travelled to the centre of the pond before dissipating into an explosion of flames. It was a truly spectacular display of both power and control, something that was amazing for someone of Sarada's age.

"THAT WAS AMAZING! Truly a spectacular display of skill and hard work!" Shisui complimented wholeheartedly while clapping his hands loudly. "Great job Sarada!"

"It was nothing really." Sarada replied while scratching the back of her head, feeling a little shy about the compliments. "In any case, you told me that you'd show me how to improve upon the fireball technique. I want to see it. I want to see your fireball uncle Shisui, one that's even more powerful than I can imagine. I know that you've got one, considering you're one of the strongest amongst the Uchiha."

"Very well Sarada. In that case, allow me to show you a much more advanced of the fireball jutsu. This is – FIRE RELEASE: BLAZE BALL!" Within the blink of an eye, Shisui exhaled a huge sun-like ball of flame that completely engulfed the entire lake in size and exploded into a cornucopia of flames that evaporated a large amount of water from the surface of the lake, effectively reducing its volume nearly in half.

Sarada was left standing there in the aftermath of the technique, not knowing how to even describe it. She was simply in awe.

"Hmmm, maybe I overdid it a little. Half of the water from the lake is gone. Maybe I need to refill it with a technique if it doesn't rain soon. In any case, hopefully that helped by giving you an idea of how to improve your fireball technique even further."

"Are you joking? That was unbelievable. It seems I have a lot more work ahead of me if I am to live up to the status set up by my family."

"Well, don't stress yourself out too much over it. I'm sure it'll come to you naturally. You're an Uchiha after all and from what I've seen so far, you're headed for great things in the future. Of course, I'll always be here if you ever need any help."

Sarada nodded in appreciation. Even though she knew there was a lot of hard work ahead of her if she ever wished to match the strength of her uncle, she was genuinely excited in learning from him. He had always been a great hand in training her on the Uchiha's techniques, far more so than her father ever did. That thought brought a frown upon her face.

"What's the matter Sarada? Why the long face?"

"I just wish my father would take interest in my achievements as well. Something…anything. He just doesn't seem to care. He's just so…distant."

Shisui could feel the disappointment in the young girl's tone. As such he knelt down next to her and patted her head in order to bring her some comfort. "Don't feel too badly about him Sarada. I know that Sasuke can seem a little distant due to his nature, but at the same time you have to understand that he has been chosen to become the next leader of the Uchiha clan and with that position comes a lot of responsibility. He's been training to take over your grandfather soon and because of that he's been busy. I know it's difficult, but you'll have to understand your father's position as well. I'm sure deep down he cares about you."

"I wonder about that." Sarada replied with a sigh.

"Come on, cheer up. Everything will work out fine. As I said before, if you ever need help, you can always count on me. In fact how about we work on your taijutsu skills from where we left off last time. I'll teach you some cool new moves that will put you ahead of all your classmates at the academy."

Sarada happily accepted Shisui's offer and the two were off to the dojo as always to train. Even though she didn't get to spend much time with her father, at least not as much as she wanted, Shisui was always very caring towards her and in many ways was both her mentor and a father figure at the same time, someone who Sarada could always count on whenever she needed it. Little did Sarada know that this relationship of master and mentor that she shared with Shisui would in fact be of great significance in the future.

 **Elsewhere within the Uchiha compound…**

Sasuke was standing next to Fugaku's bed as Sakura did a check up on him. Fugaku was clearly in very bad health; his eye's blindfolded right now.

Sasuke looked enquiringly at his wife and she simply shook her head in dismay. "I'm sorry Sasuke. We just don't know what is wrong with him and as such it has been proving impossible to find a cure."

Even though he knew the real reason behind his father's deteriorating health over time, this frustrated Sasuke to no end and he decided to take out that frustration on his wife who had little idea of what was going on. "Are you ever able to do anything right?"

"I'm sorry, I really am."

"Saying sorry just isn't going to cut it."

"That's enough Sasuke!" Fugaku ordered his son to stop. "This isn't her fault. She is a medic, not a miracle worker. She cannot cure that which has no cure."

"But father-"

"No buts. That is all. As for you Haruno, I appreciate you taking the time to tend to my ailment. But this will be enough."

"Oh no, please do not mention it father. It is the least I can do. I just wish I knew how to make your condition better." Sakura replied in an apologetic tone.

"It is okay. For now I wish for the two of you to leave me by myself." Fugaku ordered and thus both Sasuke and Sakura did as he wished and took their leave.

This would allow Fugaku to mentally prepare for his final mission.

 **Later that night…**

Once everyone in the compound was fast asleep, Sasuke made his way to his father's office and upon entering found his father waiting in anticipation for him.

"Good to see you here. It is about time for me to initiate the final steps to my plan and you Sasuke will need to take the helm from here on out." Fugaku who was already geared up to head out now finally took his blindfolds off in order to take a look at his son, but with his current eyesight he could barely make out Sasuke's face. "Since this is the end, I wish I was able to at least see your face clearly one last time, but alas, this is the price that needs to be paid in exchange for powers granted by the Mangekyou Sharingan. It's odd for me to feel this kind of sentimentality at this point in my life, but I do want to say that ever since I saw your fight between the Uzumaki and the Hyuga during the Chuunin exams, I knew that you above everyone else were the one best fit to succeed me as the Uchiha's next leader and further our true purpose. That is why I've worked to prepare you for that day, and now that day has finally arrived, it is time for you to assume responsibility as the clan's leader."

"But that means you will…" Sasuke seemed visibly distraught but before he could finish, Fugaku raised a hand to stop him.

"I know what this means. I've been prepared for this day for a long time, to play my part in furthering the Uchiha's cause. I've continued to do so for many years and I will serve that cause to the very end." Fugaku walked over to his desk and picked up the mask lying on top, the mask that had been his companion for decades. He wore it over his face, thus taking the identity of the masked man for one final time. "Remember everything that I've done thus far Sasuke. I was the one who killed Kushina Uzumaki just after she gave birth to her son. I initiated the war between Konoha and Kumogakure 21 years ago and in that process framed Minato Namikaze as a traitor to this village, stopping him from becoming the Hokage. 8 years ago during the conflict between Konoha and Kirigakure, when a peace treaty was about to be formed between the two villages, I overpowered and forced the Mizukage using my Mangekyou Sharingan to continue that conflict and frame Naruto Uzumaki as a traitor in the process, relegating him to the same fate as his father when in reality I was the one who gave Kirigakure the information required for them to launch the invasion on Konoha. Although this would have crippled Konoha in the short term, ultimately the Mizukage was under my restraint, so it would have been our victory in the end and Konoha could be rebuilt once again, this time properly in the Uchiha's vision as it once was. Most importantly, it would have allowed us to finally wipe out Naruto Uzumaki as well as his family since I also attempted to kill both his wife and still to be born child at that time in the midst of the chaos. However those last two plans failed. Naruto Uzumaki became the hero of this village during the invasion and Hinata Hyuga managed to escape successfully due to some unexpected interference. Thus here we are at present day. I've fuelled the flames of conflict between Konoha and Kumogakure once more by striking a deal with the Raikage, which will finally bring this village back into the hands of the Uchiha once more and make us far more powerful than ever before. However, Naruto Uzumaki and has been attempting to capture the traitor for some time now. Unfortunately for him I manipulated Danzo to throw him off my tracks. Thus, finally my plans can come to their ultimate fruition. But I ask you Sasuke, what's the final goal behind all that I described just now? What is the Uchiha's true purpose?"

"To fulfil Madara's will, the one who created Konoha, and to return this village back to its true intended path." Sasuke replied.

"Indeed, you are correct. Remember that the Uzumaki are a plague that corrupts the shinobi kind. Madara destroyed the Uzumaki and burned Uzushiogakure down to the ground to finally cleanse this world of that corruption. He then took the broken remains of Uzushiogakure to build Konoha, a village that would be free from all corruption. Yet somehow a few Uzumaki slipped through the cracks and one of them even managed to become the leader of Konoha. If left alone, the plague of the Uzumaki will once again spread throughout these lands. That is why I will cleanse this village of that plague once and for all so that it may begin anew. And you Sasuke will be at the helm of the Konoha reborn, leading it down its true intended path of establishing true peace. For that to happen, I must now embark on this final mission and make the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good." Fugaku grabbed his sword and placed it within its sheath on his back, finally ready to head out. "Let me ask this to you one last time Sasuke. Are you prepared to shoulder the great responsibility that the Uchiha are bound to carry?"

Sasuke took a deep breathe and replied with a resounding "YES!"

"That is exactly what I wanted to hear. Remember Sasuke, Madara's will must be fulfilled. I've done my part so far. Now it is time for you to take my place." Fugaku said to his son as he activated his Mangekyou Sharingan for one of the final few times. "This is farewell my son. I don't think I've ever said this before, but you've made me proud. The next time we meet will be at the moment of my death. Steel yourself for then."

Thus with those final words Fukagu disappeared from the Uchiha compound into the darkness of the night. Even though it pained Sasuke to see his father leave once and for all, he knew that his father had dedicated his life to fulfil the Uchiha's true purpose. As a tear rolled down the usually emotionless Uchiha's face, Sasuke knew that now he would have to assume Fugaku's place from here on out.

 **The next morning in Kumogakure…**

Darui arrived at the Raikage's office with his own squadron of high ranked, elite Kumogakure shinobi waiting outside. "Raikage-sama, I've assembled the group necessary to undertake the mission at hand. We're ready to dispatch."

"Very well. Now head out and bring me back the Hokage's son! THE BYAKUGAN WILL FINALLY BE MINE!" Ay's order resonated through his office and with that Darui, along with his squadron headed out on this truly important S-ranked mission.

 **Elsewhere in Amegakure…**

"This is it you two. This is the culmination of our plan. This is where we bring together Naruto and Hinata once again. Are you both ready?" Kushina asked her husband and son who were standing on either side of her.

"Of course. I'm certain that we will succeed in bringing about a better tomorrow." Minato reassured his wife as he assumed the identity of Tobi by putting on his signature spiral mask.

"The great Menma is accompanying you both, so we can't not succeed. Wait that was a double negative right? So that means we will definitely succeed just so you know. AH DARN IT, I'M SURE YOU GET WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY! LET'S JUST GO!" Menma ordered to his parents and thus all three of them headed out on their own mission.

 **Elsewhere at Naruto's mansion…**

Naruto woke up not too long ago and was currently having breakfast while excited to meet his son and think of ways together with him on how to get Hinata back once more. He was feeling incredibly hopeful, more so than he had ever done in the past eight years about being able to reunite his family once again.

At that moment he felt the presence of someone all too familiar at the door and heard the bell ring. He rushed over only to find Houka standing there waiting. But something seemed wrong about her. Unlike her usual self, she showed no signs of emotions at all and instead seemed almost like a puppet that was pre-programmed to bring a message.

"Follow me." Houka instructed in an emotionless tone before turning around and making a dash into the forest.

Instantly this worried Naruto and he had no choice but to run after her in order to find out what exactly was going on.

 **Finally, in the midst of a war-torn battlefield…**

Hinata stood there with Boruto alongside her, surrounded by a desolate land, not a single life form to be seen for miles. This place was a little distance away from where they lived and was the site of a once historic battle, the one between Konoha and Kumogakure during which Minato presumably died. However, right now this place would once again become the site for yet another confrontation, one that had been many years in the making.

Boruto stood next to his mother without saying a word, for his mother had this stoic and ruthless look on her face, one that was far gone from her usual kind self. He could no longer feel the warmth and love that usually radiated from her, instead being replaced by a cold and frigid disposition. He had never witnessed this side of his mother and frankly was genuinely scared of her for the very first time. He only wished now that his father would be able to do something to make everything right.

"Running away is no longer an option, because knowing him he will simply keep on chasing us to the ends of the world." Hinata said to her son as she waited in anticipation for the one man with whom her life remained most entangled. "That is why to escape from my past; I must shatter all ties that bind!"

And finally at that very moment, the person in question landed a little distance in front of her.

Thus after eight long years Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga stood face to face once more.

* * *

Here we go. HERE. WE. GO. Next time - **Shattered Ties: Naruto vs Hinata**.

Now this is what I call the mother of all cliffhangers and one I can be truly proud of.

Here's an interesting tidbit. As you saw with this chapter, there are a lot of parties involved here than just Naruto and Hinata. In fact every single one of them that was mentioned at the end of this chapter (apart from Sarada/Shisui) will become involved in the conflict in one way or another, whether directly or indirectly, with Naruto and Hinata or themselves. So how do you see this all playing out? I'd love to know your thoughts as they're always fun for me to read.

In regards to the masked man, as **unipei, NarHina, petran, AndyM9594, Janee, TheReal KewlKat, Biotechnus** predicted (some of you did so a long time ago), Fugaku was indeed the masked man. There is a deeper story here regarding the Uchiha and Uzumaki, as in this story Madara was the one who destroyed Uzushiogakure. Over time this will come to the forefront and more will be revealed.

 **Stormbane:** Yes, the reason why Hinata appears so cold and violent is because she is suppressing the kind and loving part of her, which is represented by Houka.

 **petran:** I would love to know where you saw the Fumoffu reference. I didn't intend it but I absolutely love Fumoffu so that would be fun to know.

 **ShinichiKudo7:** You think I'll give you my address so that you can come and haunt me lol? NEVER!

 **NarHina & SpicyWifey:** Both of you raise very strong points but in completely opposite ways. Reading what you two had to say and knowing that you feel so differently despite reading the same story is one of the main reasons why I love writing this story. So all I have to say is thank you and I hope I'll be able to write something in the end that will reconcile both of your viewpoints. That is the ultimate goal.

And so that'll be it for now. I hope you're looking forward to the confrontation between Naruto and Hinata just as much as I am. So until next time, take care.


	33. Shattered Ties: Naruto VS Hinata Part 1

**Shattered Ties: Naruto VS Hinata Part 1**

* * *

"Hinata…"

"Naruto…"

It was as though time itself was at a standstill as Naruto and Hinata stood face to face once more after 8 long years, staring directly into each other's souls. Even though they had been apart for so long, deep down they both knew that this confrontation was one that would be an eventual inevitability. Such was the nature of their fate.

"Have you done enough?" Hinata asked Naruto with a glare, not holding anything back to begin with. "Have you had enough of creeping behind by back and with your lies and deception?"

"It was never my intention to deceive you Hinata."

"Moving in to the same village where I live, tracking my every move, hiring me without revealing your true identity just to throw me some pity money, but above all meeting up with our son behind by back and getting him to lie about it to me. What do you call all of this other than deception?" Hinata asked once more, this time the tone of her voice even colder and harsher.

"I had no choice. For me to be able to get close to Boruto and spend time with him, I had to keep a low profile at least temporarily given how you'd react. He is my son after all. I have a right to get to know him and for him to know me."

"WHAT RIGHT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!?" Hinata shouted in anger. "Whatever right you had over us, you lost it the moment you chose Konoha over me and Boruto!"

"That couldn't be furthest from the truth. I never chose Konoha over you. The two of you mean more to me than anyone else in this world. That is why I made a promise back then that I'd protect you and Boruto at all costs!"

"Such vague and unreasonable promises mean nothing to me!" Hinata cut in unceremoniously.

But those last words of hers pushed Naruto over the edge and finally brought out the frustrations he buried deep within for all these years. To have Hinata so nonchalantly dismiss his promise which meant the world to him, infuriated him to no end as he now looked back sternly at his wife as well. "YOU of all people have NO RIGHT to lecture me on promises, given that you broke the most important promise you ever made to me at the first sign of danger. Whatever happened to staying by my side forever? You act as though you're the only one to have made sacrifices, but do you realise how much I've suffered over all these years without you? I lost my significant other. I lost my child. I lost everything that I came to cherish most when I had nothing to begin with. You think you're the only one who has the right to be mad? And why exactly are you angry at me anyway? For chasing after you even when you didn't put your faith in me? For putting aside my own frustrations to make amends with the only family I have left in this world? What kind of a wife are you Hinata? Did our bond mean so little to you? Was it all just a farce?"

"A farce? A FARCE? Are you purposefully trying to mock me!?" Hinata questioned back, her voice overcome with rage. "After you lost your father and everything that you held dear, who was it that brought you back up to your feet? When the entire village showed you nothing but hatred and malice, who was it that stood by your side and continued to support you? Tell me, who was it? WHO WAS IT!? It was me. Yet when those same villagers turned on you once again and it was time for you to make a choice, did you choose me, the one who loved and supported you unconditionally, or did you continue to pour your soul into regaining the approval of those same people who time and time again have proved that they have nothing but contempt for you? Tell me, how does that make sense?"

Naruto looked down at the ground as he recalled all the painful memories of his strained childhood and how Hinata had been the one shining beacon of light within it. That made him remember why he wanted to keep fighting in the first place.

"Hinata…it was because of you that I kept on trying despite all the negativity I was faced with." Naruto confessed, to Hinata's surprise. "When my father died and was branded a traitor, I promised myself that no matter what, one day I would prove his innocence to everyone. I wanted to accomplish that which he could not – to become the Hokage and make Konoha a peaceful abode for all. I wanted to achieve his dream in his place, as his son, because I loved him. Then the reality hit me that achieving those dreams would be a nigh impossible task given how the villagers treated me. It would be so much easier to just give up. But in that moment of darkness, it was you who gave me the hope and courage to stand up against the odds. By standing beside me and giving me support, you made me recognise the importance of keeping one's promises. As long as I had one person who believed in me unconditionally with all their heart, I could believe in myself as well and never give up. That is why I kept on trying. I did not want to let my father down. But more importantly, I did not want to let you down – the one person who always gave me hope for a better tomorrow at the end of a road filled with all the hardships. Yet why do you denounce me now for not giving up on my dreams when you yourself were the one who guided me down that path?"

Naruto's account of his past reminded Hinata of who she once used to be. She wasn't always like this. In fact, she above everyone else admired Naruto's undying belief in his ideals and the ability to chase after his dreams despite all the odds. She admired them so much in fact that his ninja way, "to never give up and to never go back on one's word" became her ninja way as well. But at the same time Hinata also remembered what it was that made her change.

"I was naïve, enamoured even by your willpower. I had never seen anyone like you. I related to you having lost my mother as well. But you were far worse off with nobody left in this world to call family. Yet you still stood tall, wanting to live up to your father's legacy. At that time I truly believed that just with undying belief in your ideals alone you could change everyone around you. Even when you were severely mistreated and I'd see you crying secretly somewhere, you'd wipe them away and smile back at me when I'd ask to help. I saw you pour your blood, sweat and tears to become stronger every single day so that you could become more valuable to the village. Together we went on countless missions and succeeded every single time, bringing glory to the village. Slowly but surely it seemed that you were starting to change everyone's outlook on you. Even though you were wrongly prejudiced from the beginning for your father's actions which you had nothing to do with, you never gave up. I saw you first hand scratching and clawing up this unbelievably tall and rocky mountain one step at a time for years, but just when it looked like you were about to reach the very summit, reality struck and you were kicked off unceremoniously to come tumbling down to the earth. The same villagers that you sought to gain approval from, every one of them turned their back on you during the incident with Kirigakure. Nobody believed you despite all that you achieved for the village over the years. They thought of you as a traitor even though you had time and time again proven your loyalty to the village, just as I'm sure was the case for your father as well. This pained me; disgusted me even. Do you realise how much it hurts to see the person you love suffering so much in pain? What was the point of all that hard work if the villagers are so fickle to turn their back on you at a moment's notice and not even give you a chance? It was at that time did I truly understand the reality of the shinobi. This system is truly corrupt where people are willing to do anything for power, even stab their own brethren in the back if necessary. It was because you were becoming so powerful that you were targeted, and along with you, me and Boruto. Those people and that system did not deserve someone like you. Even if you did claw back up to the top again, what guarantee was there that you wouldn't be stabbed in the back once more or even killed by the very members of that village? I saw no hope in it any longer. That is why I broke you out of your prison and begged and pleaded you to come with me. I believed that at the very least you would value me, the one person who stood by your side through thick and thin and join me in running away from that mess. Yet you BETRAYED my expectations and still chose to remain in that village, the source of all of your pain and suffering!"

Naruto listened to Hinata carefully and couldn't help but agree with a lot of how she felt. There was definitely truth behind what she said. But there was something he felt that was not quite correct in how she explained the entire ordeal he once faced. "I understand how you feel Hinata. I know that you are the one person who understands me better than anyone else. But you are wrong in thinking that I should have given up and ran. Think about it. Yes, the shinobi system may be corrupt and filled with senseless violence, but if no one took a stand to make the world a better place, how would we be able to change the status quo? The shinobi system that you claim to hate so much, I wanted to change it for the better at all costs. Yet you're blaming me for wanting to dedicate my life for the betterment of not only my family, but everyone else? Wanting to change the shinobi way for the better doesn't mean I don't value you or Boruto more than everyone else. Do I truly deserve to be abandoned for trying to achieve the greater good?" Naruto asked desperately. "But I understand. I get that the path I've chosen is one that is filled with dangers, ones that may even extend to my family. And yes, I did falter during that moment of weakness when I was imprisoned as a traitor by allowing harm to come your way, for which I was truly angry and upset with myself beyond words. But that is why I made you a promise. I promised that I'd protect you and Boruto from that point forth with my very life AND also fix the corruption within Konoha to create a better tomorrow for all. I expected you above all people to put your faith in me considering everything we've gone through in the past. You know better than anyone else that my word is my bond and I would put my very life on the line to fulfil it, especially when it came to the person I loved and my very child. Yet you betrayed my expectations as well! Rather my placing your trust in me and supporting me in overcoming the odds once again, you chose to turn your back on me and run away. Tell me, how is that any different from all the villagers that turned their back on me as well, the same villagers you condemn so much? Your actions hurt me more than those of anyone else in the village. You changed Hinata!"

"If I've changed, it was only because I almost got killed while pregnant with Boruto. I changed for him, not because I was afraid of losing my own life. I would have gladly dedicated my life to standing beside you and supporting you if it was just me who it concerned. But I had to live no matter what, if not for myself, for my child. THAT IS HOW A MOTHER IS! To a mother nothing matters more than the safety of her child, even if that means sacrificing her very life. You will never understand the feelings of a mother. Besides, what did you expect me to do? Sit there and hope that you'd somehow be miraculously freed from your predicament and everything would be fine? That we would live happily ever after? Hindsight maybe be 20/20 but when you are faced with a situation that threatens to take away that which you hold most precious, the decisions are much more difficult to make. That is why I wanted for you to run away with me, but you refused despite all of my begging and pleading. In the end I had no choice but to run away without you. Despite what you may think, I'm not some angelic being that is incapable of going back on promises when faced with insurmountable odds. Neither are you an omnipresent being who can overlook and protect everyone and everything at all times. You may be powerful, but you're still a human being in the end, not a superhero. You and I can only do so much. We have to sacrifice one thing to ensure the safety of another. Likewise, I sacrificed everything to keep my child safe. What sacrifice did you make to suddenly just re-insert yourself back in our lives and pretend as though nothing ever happened? Did you truly feel anything when I desperately wanted you to come with me and was forced to leave while pregnant? Because it certainly felt to me like you lumped me in with the rest of the villagers as the people you needed to protect. Was I truly someone special to you as you claim?"

"You're wrong Hinata. You're absolutely wrong. Even back then when I was framed as a traitor to Konoha, I was not alone. There were those who supported me back then as well, my closest people, and vouched for my innocence. It was because I never gave up that I was able to ultimately gain the people's approval and finally became the Hokage after so many years. Yet as I stand at the so called summit, I feel incomplete. I feel nothing but loneliness and regret. Without the very person that helped me reach this summit, without you Hinata, nothing feels right anymore. That is why I kept chasing after you for all these years and refused to give up on you. There were many times when I wished I had run away with you. That way at least I wouldn't have lost my family, the people I held dear to my heart. I was remorseful to the point of sinking into despair for letting you slip by my fingers. I thought that perhaps that night had I chased after you and left Konoha behind even when it was attacked by Kirigakure, maybe that would have been the correct choice. I didn't know what was right or wrong anymore. But one thing I do know is that I'm not the only one who is wrong here. You are just as guilty as I am! To you if I was someone truly special, you would have placed your faith in me back then no matter how dire the situation. You would have kept your promise and stayed by my side. The promise I made to you back then – that I would protect you and Boruto; it was the most important promise I had ever made as it concerned the two most precious people in my life. I would have literally put my life on the line to fulfil it. You should have known that Hinata and I was heartbroken that you didn't. Yet that promise still holds to this day, and it will hold true until my very last breath. I know what happened between us cannot be undone and I'm not asking you to forget everything. I'm just asking you to give me a chance and make amends – just one chance so that we can change the future for the better for the three of us! PLEASE!" Naruto poured his heart out to Hinata and held his hand forward, hoping that she would take it once more.

"I don't need your reassurance or promises any longer. I JUST NEED YOU TO GET OUT OF OUR LIVES!" Hinata shouted back her reply and thrust her right palm forward, sending a burst of wind towards Naruto that pushed him several feet backwards. "Enough talk! I have no intentions of returning back to the past any longer or reuniting our ties. This is my chosen path, one that I've chosen to protect my child. And if that concept is so difficult for you to grasp, then you leave me no choice but to shatter whatever ties that remain between us into pieces by force!"

Naruto could clearly see just by looking at Hinata's eyes that words would not convince her right now and that she was ready to engage him in battle. "Very well, it seems you've made up your mind. Nothing I say will change it as is. In that case I am left with no choice either but to communicate my message with brute force and make you understand that the ties that bind us cannot so easily be broken, no matter how much strain is put upon them. I WILL NOT LET THEM BREAK AT ANY COSTS!"

Both Naruto and Hinata's resolve were in place. One wished to shatter the ties that bound them together while the other fought to keep them intact. It was a stalemate that neither ever expected to be in, but they were ultimately at a crossroads. Two people who were once considered the greatest team Konoha had ever seen were now ready to go at each other's throats.

Upon Hinata's order, Houka carried Boruto far away from his parents and placed a barrier upon him. Naruto himself placed a second layer of barrier on Boruto so as to keep him safe from any crossfire. Yet the scenery of Naruto and Hinata standing face to face against each other with Boruto standing in the middle of them in the background was truly painful, considering all Boruto wanted was for his family to be reunited again. The young boy could do nothing but watch in dread and horror as his parents were getting ready to collide for real right in front of his very eyes.

Hinata wasted no time and formed a full body lion cloak as well as two lion heads around her arms. She knew what Naruto was truly capable of and was not going to underestimate him. Thus she formed a mini tailed beast ball within the mouth of a lion on one of her arms and charged right at Naruto. In response Naruto formed a rasengan of his own and charged towards her as well. Two orbs collided, resulting in an explosion, but there was no contest. Hinata's technique completely overpowered Naruto's, sending him flying back several feet and crashing into the ground while Hinata stood tall. It was ironic given that Naruto was overwhelmed by the same technique that he had helped Hinata develop while trying to teach her the rasengan.

Boruto was in awe. His mother just overpowered his father in a head to head collision and she stood there completely unphazed. And this was a man who was one of the most powerful shinobi in the world. Boruto had only ever heard before that his mother was strong too and capable of standing up to his father, but now he could appreciate that fact first hand. This was a side of his mother that he never knew even existed.

"If you don't take this seriously, you may end up broken beyond repair. I hope after all the years we spent working together, you would not make the mistake of underestimating me. This will be your last chance. You can still leave and none of this has to happen." Hinata issued a final warning and a clear ultimatum.

"It seems you truly are serious about this. I never thought this day would come where the two of us, husband and wife, would truly have to fight with no holds barred. I wouldn't have considered this in my wildest dreams and even though it irks me to do this, perhaps this is the only way. We're both shinobi after all, no matter how much you may hate it. The best way for shinobi to communicate is by sharing in each other's pain. Fighting with no holds barred will allow us to share our pain and understand one another. That may very well be the only way for us to truly reconnect after all these years. Therefore, brace yourself Hinata! I'm going to make you feel my burning will!" Naruto proclaimed out loud to Hinata and jabbed one of his hands on his abdomen, releasing a very powerful seal in the process. "ALL LIMITERS RELEASED!"

Instantly a red aura enveloped Naruto's body and his power started to rise exponentially.

Hinata stood in position still unphazed, but Boruto was in shock of what he was seeing. He had watched his father use some pretty crazy powers before, but nothing like this. And it seemed as though he was getting stronger by the second.

"W-What is going on?" The young boy asked in apprehension.

"It would appear that despite spending all this time with your father, he has not yet told you of his true capabilities." Hinata made a quick comment on the situation before making Houka who was standing next to Boruto explain the rest, so that she herself could focus on Naruto.

"As you already know, your father is a member of the Uzumaki clan who were once considered the strongest clan in existence before they were completely destroyed and made nearly extinct. There is a reason behind why the Uzumaki received that accolade of being the strongest in the first place. Just as the members of the Hyuga clan have the Byakugan as special bloodline trait, members of the Uzumaki clan are naturally born with large reserves of physical energy within their body, allowing them to use many powerful techniques compared to your average shinobi. However, that is only just scratching the surface of their true capabilities. They also have another hidden ability, one that was accessed by only a handful of Uzumaki in the past due to the immense amount of hard work and training required to unlock it. This hidden ability that an Uzumaki's body possesses allows it to passively absorb the plentiful amount of energy available in nature and combine it with their own, making their reserves far greater than almost all other shinobi. Your father is one of the few Uzumaki in the clan's history to have been able to unlock that ability through sheer dedication and years of training. Under normal circumstances he keeps that ability sealed up at all times due to the tremendous amount of stress it puts on his body to absorb so much of nature's energy, effectively keeping himself at 1% of his true power. But once that limiter seal is released, his power starts to rise rapidly and he is able to use his true capabilities. The longer the battle goes on, the stronger he gets. That is what you are seeing now."

Boruto was simply lost for words as he looked at his father, now enveloped in a menacing red aura, as well as his mother who was also enveloped by a blue lion-like aura. He was starting to realise how little he knew about his parents. Right now they seemed like completely different people than he originally knew them as.

"10 percent of maximum power reached! Let's try that again!" Naruto now formed another rasengan in the palm of his hand, but this one had two smaller rasengan orbiting around it, similar to a planet-satellite formation. Naruto charged towards Hinata once more with this powered up technique in hand. "PLANETARY RASENGAN!"

Hinata formed yet another small dark sphere of violent power in her hands and shoved it into Naruto's. "MINI TAILED BEAST BALL!"

Another explosion emanated from where the two techniques collided, but this time both Naruto and Hinata were pushed backwards from the epicentre of the blast and both remained standing as they slid to a halt.

Hinata remained unrelenting in her assault and as soon as she regained her posture, she continued on her offense. "GENTLE STEP: AIR PALMS BARRAGE!"

"WIND RELEASE: BARRAGE AIR PALMS!" Naruto retaliated with the exact same technique, one that he had learned from Hinata herself many years ago, albeit using it in an alternative way by applying his wind style affinity.

With multiple thrusts of their palms, both combatants sent a barrage of air bursts towards one another that came into contact with deafening blows before being nullified completely. Their powers were equally matched thus far.

"Just return back to me already Hinata! Look deep inside and you'll find that is what you truly want. Do you not see that I'm the Hokage now? I'm more powerful and more accepted than ever before. I can make a difference." Naruto tried his best to explain his case.

But Hinata would have none of it. "And do YOU not see that Boruto and I have been living peacefully for all these years? Is it a coincidence then that as soon as you show up in our lives once again that we started getting attacked by Kumogakure shinobi and all sorts of other people? Don't you understand that you're the one who keeps bringing the calamity of the shinobi along with you? Boruto and I could have lived our lives in obscurity as normal people and away from the threat of the ninja world if not for you."

"That is why I said I'd PROTECT you two! I've been working hard in making Konoha a better place. I've even captured the one who attacked you back then. I'm going to solve all of these problems as the Hokage. If you were by my side, with our powers combined we could speed up that process manifold while also living a normal family life. You just have to put your faith in me."

"I don't need your protection. All I need is for you to LEAVE ME ALONE!" Hinata rushed at Naruto in order to get into close quarters combat with him where she shined the most, but Naruto quickly back flipped away while preparing his next technique.

"WATER RELEASE: WATER DRAGON! WIND RELEASE: WIND DRAGON!" In the blink of an eye Naruto created both a large water and wind dragon and sent them both spiralling towards Hinata.

"GENTLE STEP: ROTATION!" Just as quickly as Naruto initiated his techniques, Hinata started spinning in position at a maddening pace, creating her own version of the Hyuga's signature technique, creating a huge blue dome around her that destroyed the two incoming dragons upon impact.

Thus they were back to square one once again. Naruto and Hinata still remained standing face to face, locked in a deadly stalemate with neither one being able to get an upper hand yet.

Having been constantly rejected thus far despite his pleading, Naruto was starting to get really frustrated with Hinata, especially knowing how she truly felt but refusing to accept those feelings. As such he decided to voice his frustrations in a much more aggressive manner this time.

"What the heck happened to you Hinata? Why are you so grumpy and angry all of a sudden? The Hinata I knew from back then used to be so cute and kind. She was practically an angel. Yet the Hinata standing in front of me right now is a far cry from her former self. I KNOW! I guess this is what happens when you don't get any ACTION for 8 years straight. And there's one very simple solution to this problem. HINATA…YOU JUST NEED TO GET LAID!" Naruto proclaimed shamelessly. "THAT'S RIGHT! Rather than fighting here in the middle of nowhere, the two of us should find a nice and quiet room somewhere and get down to some REAL GLAND TO GLAND COMBAT IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN! I GUARANTEE ONE NIGHT WILL BE ENOUGH TO SOLVE ALL OUR PROBLEMS!"

There was suddenly pin drop silence as Naruto's lewd and dumb comment completely changed the mood in the battlefield. The next thing he knew the poor Uzumaki was running with his tail between his legs and his wife chasing after him with a mini tailed beast ball in hand, ready to shove it straight up where the sun doesn't shine. Unfortunately his comment had the completely opposite effect and served to anger Hinata even more, especially given that their child could hear them.

"I'm sorry Hinata-sama! It was a joke! A joke! I haven't released the Kraken in like eight years since you left, so I'm just a bit frustrated in that regard! Please don't murder me! Konoha needs a Hokageeeeee!" Naruto pleaded his case desperately while trying to avoid Hinata's orb of destruction.

At a distance, a sweat drop visibly formed on Boruto's forehead. He wondered how his parents went from being legitimately involved in real combat just a second ago to now chasing each other around like a bunch of 5 year old kids.

" _What does it mean to get laid? Knowing him and seeing mama's reaction, it must be something pervy for sure."_ Boruto came to a sound conclusion. _"Is this really my dad?"_

To Hinata, the whole scene of her chasing after Naruto made her momentarily forget about the severity of the situation that which they were fighting over and instead overcame her with a feeling of nostalgia. For just a moment, it took her back down memory lane and reminded her of the times that she once cherished most, as scenes almost identical to this would happen often during their childhood for similarly silly reasons.

 **Flashback Start: 20 years ago**

Naruto and Hinata were both 8 years old, the same age as Boruto. Right now Naruto was running through the Hyuga compound's garden at breakneck speed with Hinata hot on his heels.

"Naruto-kuuuun, please stop running away from me." Hinata called out to her childhood friend in a gleeful tone. "Won't you allow me to play with you…for science?"

"NO! NO! Stay away from me. I don't want to be your lab rat again. No way!"

"But…but it's for my training." She replied back innocently. "I promise I'll only jab you a few times just to see how it works. It'll be quick."

"That doesn't make it any better. Try it on anyone else. Go find another Hyuga considering this is part of your clan's technique."

"But I want to do it with you Naruto-kun, not anyone else."

Naruto realised at this point that there was no outrunning Hinata. Neither did she have any intentions of giving up on the pursuit. At that moment he saw the one person who could be his salvation. Hiashi was just getting out of his office. If anyone could stop Hinata, it would be him.

As such Naruto quickly slid to safety behind the older Hyuga. "Help me old man. Your daughter is trying to have her way with me."

Hiashi was taken aback by Naruto's choice of words considering it could have a pretty questionable meaning but calmed down knowing that Naruto and Hinata were still too young to know about such things. Thus he turned towards his daughter and gave her a questioning glance. "What is going on here Hinata? What is Naruto speaking of?"

"I-It's nothing really Otou-sama. I was starting to learn the 64 palms on my spare time and needed someone to help out as my training dummy. So I was trying to persuade Naruto-kun."

"64 PALMS!?" Hiashi's eyes widened in shock. He knew Hinata was quite the prodigy since childhood, but to think she was already starting to learn one of the Hyuga's most complex techniques at such a young age left even him in awe. He would absolutely have to facilitate this development for his child by any means necessary. Thus he suddenly grabbed hold of Naruto by his shoulders and pushed the young boy in front of him.

"W-What are you doing old man?" Naruto asked, trying to break free but Hiashi's iron grip held him in place.

"This is for the greater good of the clan Naruto. Know that your contributions to the Hyuga will be duly noted. I will ensure it." Hiashi gave a rather dangerous reply with a straight face.

"TRAITOR!" The young Naruto cried out. But there was a far bigger issue brewing in front of him. As he looked ahead he saw Hinata taking one step at a time towards him almost like a zombie, all the while with an angelic smile across her face.

"Naruto-kun…I'll make this short and sweet."

"No Hinata-sama. I'm sorry. FORGIVE ME, PLEASEEEEEEEEEEE!" Naruto's cries reverberated across the Hyuga compound, all to be in vain.

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

Those memories, they brought a few tears to Hinata's eyes. All those times she spent with Naruto, they were simply…fun. And with every moment she spent around him right now, her heart yearned ever so strongly to return back to those days once again. Thus she quickly shed those tears and stopped in her tracks in order to get serious once again. She would need to end this quickly before she lost control of her emotions.

However, no matter how much time may have passed and how much Hinata thought she changed, just being around Naruto once again was starting to send her feelings into disarray.

* * *

The first crack in the proverbial armour!

This chapter was very dialogue heavy given that Naruto and Hinata had a lot to get off their chests. Next time the action will ramp up.

I really wanted to highlight Naruto and Hinata's childhood friendship with this chapter. In this story Hinata plays the part of Iruka in that she was the first person to support Naruto when the village turned on him, while Naruto remained an inspirational figure to Hinata. That childhood friendship is a big part of their relationship.

In any case, that is all for now and I'd love to know your thoughts as always.

Before I end it though, I would like to extend my sincere happy birthday wishes to **Sunflower-lilies,** a kind reader who sent a very nice message asking for this chapter to be uploaded by today. That is why the story has been updated on the 3rd of March, her birthday. If not for her request this chapter probably would have come out a bit later considering I've been a bit swamped with work recently. In any case, hope you had a great birthday!

I will see you all next time.


	34. Shattered Ties: Naruto VS Hinata Part 2

**Shattered Ties: Naruto VS Hinata Part 2**

* * *

Hinata stopped chasing after Naruto and backed off, creating some distance and bringing back a serious atmosphere between them. Naruto noticing this also stopped in his tracks and turned around to face her, once again preparing to get back into the fray.

While time passed, Naruto's body continued to absorb more and more of nature's energy from the surrounding terrain, making the red aura around him darker and even more intense. He had now reached a significant fraction of his full potential.

"25 percent! With this you'll no longer be able run away from me Hinata. MASS SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!" In just an instant and in an effortless manner Naruto created a thousand clones of himself that filled the battlefield almost as far as the eyes could see.

Boruto knew that his father could clone himself, but to see someone create this many clones was simply unbelievable. His father and his shadow clone army felt like an unstoppable force.

In response to Naruto's wanton creation of shadow clones, Hinata summoned her remaining counterpart that was yet to enter the battle, the tiger that represented the stalwart part of her persona. Yuki was ready to finally go head to head with Naruto as she wished to settle the conflict between Naruto and her true self. Hinata also called upon Houka to join the two in battle, finally completing the trifecta that was Hinata and her counterparts. Even though they were vastly outnumbered by Naruto and his clones, Houka and Yuki had far surpassed the status of simple clones and when they stood side by side with Hinata, the three of them formed a unit that was far greater than the sum of their individual parts.

The only problem here was the fact that Houka was being forced into this battle by Hinata, which in itself spoke volumes of the inner conflict Hinata was undergoing while facing Naruto, but she kept suppressing Houka's psyche in order to force her into following her summoner's orders no matter how much she was against it.

Naruto noticed the change in Houka's usual demeanour and was shocked to see her standing against him in this fight. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, especially with their earlier encounters that Houka would never go against him as she represented the part of Hinata that loved Naruto unconditionally and wished for the two of them to be together again. To see her standing against him in such an emotionless manner was painful to watch. "HINATA, what the heck did you do to Houka? She looks emotionless and cold. That isn't like her at all since her personality always favoured the loving and caring part of you. Even after all these years she hasn't changed. So what gives? Don't tell me you're suppressing her emotions!"

"So what if I am?" Hinata questioned back. "She went against me and allowed for this lie between you and Boruto to perpetuate. This is a fitting role for her to join in this fight against you. After all, she was originally just a clone of mine. The idea of a clone going against its summoner is unheard of."

This really angered Naruto after hearing of Hinata's treatment of her clone, and in essence a large part of herself. "ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME!? The fact that Houka exists and is the way she is says that you still love me more than you're willing to admit. Have you forgotten that she is just a part of you and reflects your inner feelings? She is after all derived from my own shadow clone technique that I taught you. The fact that you have to suppress her emotions, and by proxy your own is ridiculous. You're a walking, talking sack of contradiction. You're a mess Hinata, an absolute trainwreck without me! When are you going to accept that fact and just return back to my side where you both WANT and KNOW you truly belong?"

Before any more words could be exchanged however, numerous swords made of the earth started to emerge from the ground.

"GENTLE STEP: 64 SWORDS!" In the blink of an eye, Yuki sent all 64 of those swords flying radially outwards in every which direction at blinding speed, impaling four to five of Naruto's clones with each one and reducing his total clone count by nearly a third. She then wasted no time and jumped right into point blank range of Naruto, letting out a mighty ear shattering roar that pushed him back a dozen feet just from the force alone.

Unlike Houka, Yuki felt almost strong towards Naruto as she had inherited the part of Hinata that felt betrayed by him for not valuing her more than Konoha and escaping with her. As such she had no qualms with fighting Naruto. In fact she wanted to settle the score with him once and for all.

"You've spoken enough, and with your words you're caused enough pain. The time for talk is over. It is time for our actions to speak louder than any words ever could. Brace yourself!" Yuki delivered her one singular ultimatum to Naruto before doing something she had not done in many years. She transformed into her original self, from her tiger form into her clone human form, one that made her look nearly identical to Hinata, except from the glowing yellow hair. In her humanoid form, Yuki dropped on to one of her knees and pushed both hands firmly into the ground, initiating one of her most powerful techniques. "Earth Release: Boundless Precipice Blades!"

The terrain started to shake as innumerable earth swords rose out of it and lay planted on the ground, ready to be used for battle. Now the place truly did look like an abandoned site of a cataclysmic war.

"We have crossed blades many times before and the time has come for us to do so again. Only difference appears to be that this time it won't simply be for training purposes. But if this is what you want, then so be it. Wind Release: Storm Blade!" There was a tone of regret in Naruto's voice as he did not wish to fight Hinata or her counterparts in earnest. But he had no other choice if he wanted to reach through to her. Thus he raised his hands up into the air, causing chaotic vortices of wind to gather all around him until eventually he calmed them down and made them take form into something. That something however was completely invisible and only Naruto seemed to be able to sense its presence and he now held it firmly in his hands. He swung that object in a wide arc as a warm up exercise, having not used it in a long time, but that one simple swing was enough to send a powerful blast of wind emanating across the battlefield.

Boruto toppled over on to his back from the force of the wind soaring by. Had he not been protected by two sets of barriers from both of his parents, he would have been blown away completely off his feet by the impact. The young boy was curious about what it was his father was holding as right now it seemed like he was holding on to thin air. Thus an idea occurred to him and he activated his Byakugan to see if those special eyes showed him anything beyond what his normal vision allowed. Sure enough, just one look at his father with his Byakugan and he could clearly see him holding on to a large broadsword composed entirely of violent winds given shape in his hands. And given the extremely sharp nature of wind, this was a sword with greater slicing capabilities compared to any material sword in existence.

"True self, leave him to me." Yuki looked back for a second at Hinata and gave her a reassuring gaze.

Hinata nodded back in response. "As you wish. Houka and I will take care of the rest of the clones."

Thus Hinata took her other counterpart to fight the rest of Naruto's clones, leaving Yuki and Naruto alone to face off in a battle of the swords.

"Uzumaki Naruto, let us dance together one final time in this ballet of blades!" Yuki made a clear declaration of her intents to Naruto before pulling out two swords from the ground and lunging right at him with a single-minded determination – to end this conflict for good.

Yuki swung her swords with power, yet at the same time her movements were completely derived from the Hyuga's gentle fist arts and as such flowed gracefully like water through a river. But as soon as her earth swords made impact with Naruto's wind blade, they were sliced in half. Naruto's sword was simply sharper and far more powerful. This however did not stop Hinata's counterpart as she knew quite clearly the difference in power between the swords they wielded and it was precisely the reason why she created so many earth swords that currently lay scattered across the battlefield. What her sword lacked in power, she intended to make up in number and eventually whittle Naruto's sword out of existence.

She threw her broken swords away without a second thought and pulled out another pair to replace them, attacking Naruto with them once more. The outcome was the same. The swords sliced into pieces, but another two immediately replaced them. This cycle continued as Yuki danced all around Naruto with grace while maintaining the relentless onslaught with her swords, pushing him back with every strike and forcing him to constantly be on guard. All Naruto could do was to follow her movements to the best of his abilities and remain on the defence given that she left not a single gap in her attack pattern.

The two fought all over the battlefield and one could hear only the sounds of swords clashing and being sliced apart. 5 minutes…10 minutes…15 minutes…20 minutes passed, yet both combatants remained stalwart in their roles. Just as Yuki's offense remained unrelenting, Naruto's defence seemed impregnable. Neither side was ready to give an inch. Hundreds upon hundreds of broken swords now remained scattered everywhere.

In the meantime Hinata along with Houka had managed to dissipate the remainder of Naruto's clone so that they too could join up with their counterpart and were currently headed that way. Boruto on the other hand had followed his father in order to watch his bout with his mother's special clone from a distance and he was simply mesmerised by their exchanges. It was like the perfect storm of both attack and defence, something that was only possible between two shinobi of the highest level; two masters of their own art locked in a deadly stalemate. To him it seemed like neither side would ever be able to come out the victor.

Yet Naruto thought otherwise. As more and more time passed during their engagement, he could start to see clearly small gaps in Yuki's offense. The gaps were so small in fact that the majority of shinobi would never be able to recognise or exploit them, but given that Naruto had trained with her for years in the past, he could clearly see her slipping in the minutest of ways. And he could exploit this. Before his sword would be whittled down completely, he could deal the finishing blow.

Naruto bid his time and kept observing his opponent while blocking her every attack. Exhaustion was starting to set in but that was hardly enough to slow him down right now. This was after all the most important fight of his life thus far and he could ill afford to lose. He waited and waited until that perfect opportunity suddenly appeared. There was a sizeable gap in between one of Yuki's sword hits to the other and it was during that moment Naruto jabbed the sharp hilt of his blade right into her midsection, staggering her in place. This allowed him charge up his sword further by gathering even more air from the surroundings and unleashing them all at once, creating a turbulent storm blade of grand proportions. He swung that sword in a wide arc, catching Yuki completely square across her body and sending her crashing through the ground. The damage done was so great that she reverted back to her tiger form and was out, at least for now, and Naruto's wind blade dissipated along with it. A normal shadow clone would have been completely destroyed by that attack, but given that Yuki was a highly advanced clone created from a combination of the shadow clone and Hinata's gentle step techniques, she at least still remained in existence, albeit unable to fight.

"Your fangs have dulled Yuki. Given that we used to train all the time together and developed our sword techniques alongside one another, this was hardly your best from what I remember. It would appear that a lack of training over the years has taken a toll on your skill level. But more importantly, you've lost all your synergy with your counterparts. You and Houka seem have become complete opposites of one another and Hinata is stuck somewhere in between, in that she doesn't seem to even know how she truly feels anymore. Hinata's internal conflict has led to all of you becoming weaker. None of you are on the same page anymore, even though you were originally supposed to be her clones." Naruto explained and shook his head in disappointment. Even though he had won this little bout, there was just no satisfaction in beating one of Hinata's counterparts for real, let alone one who clearly had not kept up with him over the years due to both an outward lack of training as well as inner harmony. Even though Naruto and Hinata were once equally powerful, there was now definitely a gap in their strength, no matter how small.

Before Naruto could regain his breath from that elongated clash with Yuki, he suddenly felt the presence of someone approaching rapidly from behind him. He turned around but was momentarily caught off guard due to the fatigue that had built up from the previous bout and was caught square in the jaw by one of Hinata's palm thrusts that left him staggering backwards several steps in recoil. She then jabbed him precisely at one of the weak points on his midsection that left him short on breath.

But Naruto recovered quickly and caught her with a powerful punch right in her midsection as well. Both of them now held on to their stomachs and coughed in pain, both being worn out from fighting each other's clones.

"ENOUGH!" Hinata shouted as she jabbed him once more in a weak point on the nerves on his shoulder that hurt like the sting of ten bees at once.

"THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN SAYING ALL ALONG!" Naruto fired back by head butting Hinata straight across her forehead that left both of them dazed. Uzumaki's skulls were known to be particularly strong.

"Ah that hurt! Why don't you just go back and play Hokage all you want? You've achieved your dream. YOU DON'T NEED ME ANYMORE!" This time Hinata took the heel of her shoe and stamped on Naruto's toe with full force.

"Oooouch my toe! Isn't it obvious why I can't just give up on you? A DREAM WITHOUT YOU WAS NEVER MY DREAM TO BEGIN WITH!" Naruto proclaimed out loud and landed a roundhouse kick right across Hinata's butt, with his bad leg no less. "By the way Hinata, did I ever tell you that you have some fine child bearing hips?"

"Why you!" Hinata spun around and kicked him back right on the shin of the same leg with the throbbing toe, leaving him hopping around on one leg. "You're the Hokage now. I'm sure there are women ready to jump you at the first opportunity they get. I'M SURE YOU'LL BE HAPPY WITH SOMEONE ELSE TO BOTHER!"

"If that's the case, why didn't YOU find someone else in these past 8 years? Let's face it, neither you nor I will ever be emotionally or physically satisfied by any other man or woman. YOU HINATA MAY AS WELL BE NARU-SEXUAL AND I MAY AS WELL BE HINA-SEXUAL!" He declared shamelessly before placing a huge bite on his wife's neck like a vampire trying to suck blood out of its victim.

Unbeknownst to them both, their fight had devolved into almost like a flashback from the time when they were infants where when their parents brought them together, baby Naruto and baby Hinata would often end up biting and jabbing one another playfully and do all sorts of other childish things. Even as adults, not a whole lot had changed apparently.

Hinata, having had enough of her futile argument with Naruto found a golden opening to deliver the great equaliser. Thus she took the easiest way out by going low and kneed him right in the balls.

Time seemed to slow down as Naruto grasped his precious marbles with both hands and dropped to the floor like a sack of bricks. It was a one hit K.O, more effective perhaps than the majority of ninja arts would ever be.

Boruto watched wide eyed and shut both of his legs closed as an instinctual response to what he saw and wanting to protect himself from the same fate. He had been hit once before in that same area by a tennis ball while playing with his friends and it felt to him at the time like the world was about to end. He could only imagine what his father must be going through right now having been deliberately kicked right in his gonads by his mother. No matter how evil a person may be, and his father was most certainly not evil, Boruto felt that no one deserved this kind of punishment. Looking closely at his father he could see the poor man twitching on the ground as though he was having an epileptic seizure attack. Boruto closed his eyes, unable to watch the suffering and silently prayed for his father's cajones.

"Ohhhhhh…my beloved…family jewels." Naruto whimpered in pain. "I appreciate you touching me there once again...but not like this. Why would you do that Hinata? This is our future children we're talking about."

Hinata didn't respond. Instead she simply backed off, creating some distance between the two. Naruto was down and this was her chance to finally end their conflict. She was going to prove once and for all that she had overcome her feelings for him and that she was able to sacrifice their relationship for the greater good. To prove that she was truly over Naruto, Hinata decided that she would have Houka, the part of herself that loved Naruto the most, deal the finishing blow to the ties that bound them together. Thus she ordered Houka to step forward.

"Houka, do it…" Before she could complete her order however, an intense feeling of remorse and sorrow overtook her and she dropped on to her knees. The emotions towards Naruto that she kept suppressed for so long were finally reaching a breaking point. Being around him any longer was too much to bear. No matter how much Hinata tried, she just could not bring herself to attack Naruto.

" _Arggghh…why…why did it have to be like this? Why must I have to fight the one man I love the most? Why do I need to break my ties with the one person whose side I've stood by ever since childhood? Why must I have to sacrifice that which is so precious? All I ever wanted was for us to me a happy family together. Then why? WHY MUST THIS HAPPEN TO ME!?"_ Hinata's mind started to bring up the very questions that she had buried deep within for years. Now with Naruto right in front of her, she had no choice by to confront those questions that challenged the very path she had chosen to tread. _"No, I did what I did for the sake of my son. I did what had to be done. He chose not to side with me. I couldn't risk my son's life on the back of baseless promises. I had no other choice!"_

Hinata's internal conflict that had haunted her ever since the day she left Konoha was starting to spiral out of control and she could do nothing but hold her head and writhe in agony. This wasn't any physical pain, but one that tore at her very psyche. Ultimately all Hinata ever wanted was to live a happy and peaceful life with her family. Yet that was just not meant to be.

Trying desperately to overcome the intense headache and inner turmoil, Hinata barely managed to give out her order to Houka once more. She was dead set in proving to herself that she truly could overcome her past. "Houka…...attack!"

But despite her order, Houka remained motionless.

Hinata was in shock and she repeated her order again. "You heard what I said. Attack him!"

Yet once again there was no response. The Leopard stood silently in place. Hinata's orders were no longer working on her own counterpart. Unbeknownst to Hinata, this was due to her own inner conflict and how she herself truly did not want to attack Naruto despite what she showed outside. Her inner desires were reflected upon Houka and were preventing her from being able to get her counterpart to go against her own will.

"Leave this to me!" At that moment of great discord, Yuki arrived on the scene once more, barely recovered from her earlier bout with Naruto. She unlike Houka was determined to see this through to the end.

"GO…END THIS!" Hinata ordered desperately, just wanting her suffering to finally come to an end. By defeating him, she wanted Naruto gone from her life and for all her decisions to be validated. Or so she thought.

As soon as the tiger got ready to charge at Naruto, a barrage of flames rained down on her from above, levelling her completely to the ground. Houka had just dealt a severe blow against her own counterpart, having finally broken free of Hinata's suppression. Thus she once again returned to being her true self.

"W-What are you doing!?" Hinata asked in shock of the actions of her own clone, not yet accepting that she herself was the one who truly desired for this to happen deep down.

"Naruto-kun...NOW! You must open her eyes! No matter what she says, her love for you will never die. I guarantee it! My existence is proof of it! You just have to remind her of what truly lies deep within!" Houka shouted to Naruto.

"I got this – 50 percent!" Naruto sprung into action once more as his body finally reached halfway to his maximum power. "Hinata, you're a terrible liar and I'm going to wake you up from this stupidity if it's the last thing I do. It's time for you to stop being so stubborn and get your ass back to where it belongs – right here by my side!"

Hinata was taken aback by the intensity in both Naruto's eyes and voice. When he spoke with authority, there was no one more believable in this world to her than Naruto. And right now she was faltering in his presence. Her willpower to stand against him was slowly being eroded away. She quickly forced Houka into suppression again to stop her from running to Naruto's side and stood up to activate her lion fists once more in order to face a very determined and fired up Naruto.

"You think you can just brush aside our entire history together? You think you can restrain your feelings for me? It's about time I woke you up with your very own signature technique, one that you yourself taught me as a symbol of our love and friendship, just like I once taught you my signature technique, the shadow clone jutsu, which developed into Houka and Yuki. Now, prepare yourself to face the dragons!" Naruto just like he had done earlier in the battle created two elemental dragons of water and wind, now more powerful than ever before. However, what was most striking this time was that he did not send the dragons flying towards Hinata. Rather the head of the dragons remained bound to his fists and their long tails floating freely behind him, identical to how Hinata held her lion fists. He then bent his knees to take the exact same stance as Hinata and yelled, "GENTLE STEP: TWIN DRAGON FISTS!"

Hinata was stunned in place. She remembered it quite clearly. This was just like old times in the Hyuga dojo. Naruto had trained for years with the Hyuga and because he was so keen in learning the Hyuga's fighting style, she taught him her clan's various stances and forms and even came up with an alternative to her own lion fists that Naruto could use – the dragons. Everything that she had given him as a symbol of their bond as friends, teammates and lovers was coming back to haunt her right now.

Hinata took her own stance as well, preparing to face Naruto in the ways of the Hyuga. There was no way she could allow him to overcome her using her clan's fighting style, let alone with a technique she herself taught him in the past.

"GENTLE FIST ART: 64 PALMS!" Both Naruto and Hinata shouted at the same time before dashing towards one another.

It was a fierce collision between the lions and dragons as they both threw palm after palm at one another. Naruto's years of training with the Hyuga were paying dividends, allowing him to match Hinata's movements every step of the way. Even though he didn't have the Byakugan to truly master the precision of the gentle fist, with Hinata's help he was able to develop the dragons in a way such that he could simply try to overpower the enemy with fierce strikes and not have to worry about hitting them precisely at their weak points.

That strategy right now was working. Even though Hinata aimed to hit Naruto's weak spots, after having spent years training with her Naruto knew exactly where she was going to attempt to strike him and was able counter every time. Her attack pattern was predictable to Naruto. Thus it became a battle of whose strikes were more powerful and in a battle of pure power Naruto had the upper hand. With every palm that they connected, Naruto kept pushing Hinata back further and further until eventually as they both went for the final 64th palm, the force from Naruto's hit completely overwhelmed her, sending her flying backwards and into the ground. Naruto had clearly won that exchange.

"HOW'S THAT? Beaten by the same techniques you once taught me. Now do you appreciate our past?"

Hinata scrambled on to her feet, feeling humiliated to be outdone by her own technique. But most importantly, she refused to let the past that she ran away from completely overwhelm her like this. If this is how Naruto was going to fight her then she also had an answer. Thus a small yet visible smile crept up on Hinata's face, one that irked Naruto.

"W-What's so funny? What are you smiling for?"

"If stealing my techniques in order to defeat me is going to be your course of action, then two can play at that game. Houka! Yuki! Charge him!" She sent both of her counterparts dashing towards Naruto at breakneck speed and prepared to unleash one of Naruto's original techniques.

Naruto instantly got on guard as he had no idea what Hinata was trying to do, but it didn't matter. He was going to stop her. Little did he know the unconventional plan that Hinata had in mind. As soon as the leopard and the tiger jumped towards Naruto, she activated her technique while they were mid-air.

"Uzumaki Naruto's Ninja Handbook: Sexy Reverse Harem Transformation Jutsu!" Instantly both Houka and Yuki transformed into identical yet completely naked clones of Hinata, only small clouds of smoke covering up their modesty, leaving every other curve for the eyes to see.

Naruto's eyes nearly popped out of his sockets and a stream of blood blasted out of his nose. He could not believe what he was seeing, but enjoyed the view regardless. However it was that momentary distraction that Hinata needed. By the time Naruto came to his senses, the real Hinata was gone from his vision and was already at point blank range behind him, punching him square across the chest as soon as he turned around.

"U-ZU-MA-KI NA-RU-TO!" Hinata yelled out every syllable of Naruto's name as she and her clones pummelled him with punches and kicks from every direction before finally kicking him up into the air, only to be sent crashing down into the ground face first by a vicious heel drop kick from Hinata. This was the very first taijutsu combo Naruto ever created, the Uzumaki Naruto combo, and Hinata was about to make it even deadlier by adding another one of his signature techniques to it.

"RASENRENGAN!" She then formed two rasengans in mid-air and slammed them right into Naruto's back, flattening him even further into the ground and making him eat dirt.

At that point her clones transformed back into their animal forms as they all jumped away from their target. Hinata had just used in succession three of Naruto's oldest techniques.

"How could you, true self? That is shameful!" Yuki expressed her disdain towards the use of the sexy transformation technique.

"I don't care. Anything that works." Hinata replied, feeling equally ashamed for having to resort to that technique, especially because Naruto had insisted on teaching it to her right after their marriage for completely different purposes which had nothing to do with battle. In fact he would detest the idea of her using it on anyone but him, to which she stayed true, but not in the way he expected.

Despite the rest of his body remaining motionless on the ground, Naruto raised a thumbs up into the air as blood continued to flow out of his nose. "Sometimes in life it is worth taking the pain for a pleasure even greater."

At a distance Boruto's jaws were on the floor from what he saw. The young boy already knew how lecherous his father could be, but seeing his mother use the sexy jutsu was nothing he would have ever imagined in his wildest dreams. Maybe, just maybe, his mother may be just as bad as his father on the down low. Those two were highly compatible he thought.

At this point both sides were pretty beat up. Even though his back was messed up right now, Naruto still clawed his way on to his feet. He simply refused to throw in the towel.

"Just give up already." Hinata demanded with all she had, but a tinge of hesitation now clearly evident in her tone. "I don't want to escalate this any further than it needs to go. The ties between us that you keep referring to no longer exist."

"Give up? You GIVE UP trying me make me GIVE UP!" Naruto replied with an equal amount of zeal in his voice. "You talk about breaking the ties that bind us together, yet you don't seem to understand that the two of us were bound together by fate since the moment we were born. You want to shatter the ties of fate? That is an impossibility! YOU KNOW THAT JUST AS WELL AS I DO!"

Hinata took a step back from the utter determination in Naruto's voice. Everything that he said resonated with what she herself always wanted deep down. Perhaps in a different place and at a different time, the two of them along with Boruto could have been the perfect family together. She only wished that was true. But maybe…just maybe…that wish could still come true. Those thoughts as they grew ever so powerful were making Hinata's inner conflict truly spiral out of control right now.

"Why…why do you keep chasing me after all these years?" She asked in a meek and desperate tone this time. "Why do you insist on making this so hard for me?"

"Isn't that obvious? It's because I love you with all my heart. I always have and I always will." Naruto confessed with the utmost devotion. "I know deep down you feel exactly the same way, which is why I'm either going to get you back by my side once again or I will die trying. That is the strength of my eternal love for you!"

Those final words, they made Hinata's heart throb like crazy after many long years, just like the very first time he confessed his love to her and every other subsequent time he did so as well. It was a special kind of feeling that only Naruto could ever stir up within her, and no matter how many times he said it, that feeling never changed.

* * *

The proverbial armour is crumbling!

Next time the battle finally comes to an end, but with it begins a far greater conflict. If you've been waiting to see how the other parties will get involved, then next chapter will involve at least one of them jumping into the fray. Who will it be and what will be their first course of action? How will Naruto and Hinata react? I'd love to know your thoughts as always.

 **unipei:** Your comment just made me lol. Of course given that this is a fight involving Naruto, there has to be some serious Talk No Jutsu involved. You can see it. His Talk No Jutsu is already effective on most people, but it just so happens that it's super effective on Hinata lol. I kid. I kid. But seriously, that TnJ tho...

 **NarHina:** To answer your question, Hinata definitely knew that Naruto had been imprisoned. In fact a large part of the chapter "Ideals vs Reality" was Hinata breaking Naruto free from the prison and trying to get him to escape with her because she was being attacked and Naruto was being imprisoned as a traitor. It has been a while since the chapter though, so I wanted to clarify that.

That will be all for today. I hope you all will join me next time to see the conclusion to Naruto and Hinata's battle. Until then, see you later Feraligatr!


	35. Shattered Ties: Naruto VS Hinata Part 3

**Shattered Ties: Naruto VS Hinata Part 3**

* * *

As always Naruto had a way with words, which could make one question their very motives and intentions. Hinata right now was faltering in his presence, but despite that she refused to concede on her stance or her decisions. She would fight for all that which she stood for. As such, with no other choices left, Hinata prepared to go all out given that everything else had failed so far. Thus the battle was about to reach its final stage with all unchains unbound.

Both Houka and Yuki planted their tails into the ground, making the entire terrain start to shake violently as though a devastating earthquake had just hit. At the same time intense heat spread across the land and started to burn the battlefield, making it impossible for anyone but Hinata to remain standing on it.

Once the earthquake subsided, all that was left was a desolate and scorching terrain as far as the eyes could see, and the heat emanating from it affected the atmosphere, intensifying the sun's rays even further and creating a battlefield that was a perfect complement to Hinata's true power. The land was her domain now and anyone she didn't want on it would be incinerated.

"You really want to continue this to the bitter end huh? Fine, have it your way then. But just know so you know, I won't give up either, no matter the cost." Naruto jumped off the ground and launched himself high up into the air where he was now floating freely by controlling the flow of air around him. He took Boruto into the air along with him, even though technically Hinata's barrier would have protected her son from her own ability. His own barrier would also protect his son from what he was about to bring forth.

The red aura around Naruto thickened even further as he now reached 80 percent of his maximum, reaching very close to his true power. It was as though nature itself started reacting to him, as powerful wind currents whipped up above the entire battlefield, reaching to a point where they became so strong that they would blow away anything that stood in their path. Dark clouds loomed overhead and violent lightning surged through them. It wasn't long before a torrential downpour began. A devastating storm was upon them.

Hinata had to firmly plant herself into the ground in order to not be taken off of her feet and into the air. She knew very well that if she lost her footing and was taken by the wind, that would be the end for her. Just as the earth was her domain right now where she would be unmatched, the sky was Naruto's where he reigned supreme.

Naruto and Hinata's abilities were attempting to counteract one another but to no avail. Even though the sun's intense rays still pierced through the clouds, neither the rainfall nor the violent winds would stop. At the same time despite the raging storm and rain, the ground still remained scorching from the immense heat. Both of their abilities combined together had created a contradiction within nature – a stormy, sunny day.

"STORM OF BEGINNINGS!"

"LAND OF ENDINGS!"

Naruto and Hinata shouted at the same time, and thus their most powerful abilities were fully in effect, which allowed them to change the battlefield itself to one in which they thrived. Given her namesake, "Hyuga", Hinata was at her strongest under the blazing heat of the sun. Similarly for Naruto, being an "Uzumaki", he was at his best in the midst of a chaotic maelstrom. There was a reason why Naruto and Hinata never once failed a mission and were considered the greatest team in Konoha's history. Yet now as they stood against one another, ready to collide at their absolute extents, it truly was a battle between the scions of two of the strongest clans in history and perhaps the strongest members of those clans to have ever lived.

"This is where it ends! FULL POWER TAILED BEAST BALL!" Hinata, Houka and Yuki each created a mini-tailed beast ball of their own before joining them all together to form a much larger and far stronger version of it. As the chaotic orb floated above Hinata, it absorbed the heat being emanated from the ground below and became even more powerful, reaching its fully powered state.

"If this is what it takes for me to reach you, then so be it! WIND RELEASE: MASSIVE RASENSHURIKEN!" In retaliation Naruto made several clones around him and with their help he himself created the largest and most powerful version of his rasenshuriken. The violent storm surrounding it enhanced the rasenshuriken even further, increasing its size to over a hundred times when compared to the original.

Boruto was in awe of the two orbs that his parents held, even more so than the fact that he was currently floating in air high up in the sky and away from the battle thanks to his father. Even though he hadn't ever seen them in effect, he could tell both would be devastating. He didn't have to wait much longer as his parents launched their techniques towards one another at full speed and within a matter of seconds they came in contact.

An explosion of a massive scale unlike anything Boruto had ever seen before rocked the entire battlefield. Even though the young boy was very far away from explosion, the shockwave from it sent turbulent winds blasting in all directions, ones that sent him flying up even further into the sky in recoil. When he finally came to and was able to survey to the situation clearly with the Byakugan, Boruto's could see that a large crater now remained where the two techniques collided and to both his shock and relief, his mother remained standing at the middle of the crater while his father floated in the air a little distance above her, both of them seemingly unphased despite the catastrophe they caused. This made Boruto finally start to understand the kind of shinobi his parents truly were. Neither of them was normal or average by any means. They were ones who had inherited and mastered the absolute power of two legendary clans.

It was a stalemate so far that neither seemed to be able to break. But Naruto suddenly got an idea as he remembered something from the past, one that would allow him to exploit the battlefield in an unexpected way.

"HINATA, if you really think you can break our ties for good then look me directly in the eyes…look towards me right now and SAY IT TO MY FACE!" Naruto had got Hinata's attention and she looked up at him in order to meet his challenge, not knowing what he was truly planning as he swiftly flew through the sky until the sun was directly behind him. It was only when she saw the sun's piercing light surrounding his silhouette that she realised what was going on. But it was too late. She had already looked. "You fell for it. I've got you know. Uzumaki Style Secret Technique: HINATA!"

Just as the technique's name implied, Hinata had made of mistaking of looking _towards the sun_ , and before she could even close her eyes, Naruto took advantage of the sun's intense rays as caused by Hinata's ability and focused them, using it to blind Hinata's eyesight. The technique was quick and only caused temporary blindness on the target, but it could be used on as many people who made the mistake of looking up towards the sun when the technique was activated and completely took away their vision. But the greatest irony of it all was the fact that for Naruto to use this technique, the sun's rays needed to be amplified by Hinata's special ability. That is why he named the technique "Hinata", as its literal meaning matched up with what he wanted the enemy to do and that it required Hinata's Land of Endings to be active.

It was only when Naruto had remembered that thought that he realised he could use the very technique named after his wife to catch her off guard. And now that he had taken away Hinata's greatest asset, her Byakugan, he dashed through the air towards her in order to finally put an end to this struggle.

It seemed like Hinata fell for it as she appeared completely dazed and was rubbing her eyes in order to regain her eyesight. Even her clones were in the same predicament. But as soon as Naruto got close enough, Hinata suddenly jumped up into the air above Naruto and started rotating her whole body.

"Oh crap!" Naruto knew he was screwed at that point. He had been played.

"Gentle Step Secret Technique: NARUTO!" Hinata spun at a blinding pace and created a blue dome around her, which seemed at first like the Hyuga's signature Rotation. But along with her, Hinata whipped up the already violent winds flowing through the battlefield and sent them into a frenzy, creating a huge whirlpool-like maelstrom of wind around her. Naruto made the mistake of getting close enough to Hinata so that now he was caught, unable to escape and being thrown around like a ragdoll within the chaos. Once again, the irony was in the fact that for Hinata to be able to use this technique, she needed the turbulent winds that were brought forth by Naruto's special ability. That is why she named the technique "Naruto", as its literal meaning implied the maelstrom of winds that she was creating, but also because it required Naruto's Storm of Beginnings to be active.

Once she put him through the wringer enough, Hinata stopped spinning and sent Naruto flying towards the ground, where he bounced off of the incredibly hot surface once and flew up into the sly in an instant.

"ARGH HOT!" Naruto yelled in pain and turned around to allow for the rain to fall directly on the part of his back that had touched the ground and was now reddened. Not to mention the fact that Naruto's head was spinning like crazy after being hurled around for some time. Most people would have passed out during that experience. While Naruto regained his bearings, Hinata was also finally able to restore her eyesight as well.

Thus once again they were back to a stalemate as before. Nothing was changing.

"You're too stubborn for your own good Hinata. I wish you would accept the truth already."

"You are the last person that should be calling me stubborn. You've been chasing after me for 8 years and even now after all this fighting, you still remain insistent on making me return to you. When will you realise that this is all futile?"

"I thought I already told you, I'm not going to give up. I promised you that I'd remain by your side forever when we married. I promised myself that I would fix all of the problems between us no matter how long it takes. I will live up to those promises, because that is my ninja way. Even if it means I have to go all out, then so be it. You better bring your greatest defence, because right here, right now, I'm going to break through to you!" The red aura around Naruto now became a deep bloody red in colour as he reached 90% of his full power. In this state he could now use what could be considered perhaps the single most purely offensive technique in his arsenal, and to do so he once again created the two wind and water dragons that were a staple of his repertoire of jutsus. Now in the midst of the raging storm both dragons were powered up even further to their absolute limits and were circling restlessly around Naruto. It was time. Naruto along with the two dragons shot up into the sky above the clouds, so high in fact that they were completely out of sight. It was as though they had ascended into the heavens above.

Hinata knew what Naruto was planning and she had to act fast. He really was planning on giving it his all here. When he told her she would need to bring her absolute defence, he wasn't lying. Hinata, knowing that the end was nigh, released Houka from her binding. She would need the full help of her clones here.

"H-He's going for it, his greatest offence." Houka said to Hinata in a worried tone. "There's only one thing you have left to do now."

"For once in a very long time, I agree with her." Yuki replied as she too was highly concerned with what was about to happen. "It is about time that you combined with the two of us to use the one technique that can counter his. You must form the greatest defence."

Both Houka and Yuki came to an agreement after many years, one that brought about a resonance between the two of them and Hinata. In an odd turn of events, Naruto had in his own way got Hinata and her clones to be on the same page once more, and thus all three of them together felt just as empowered as they once did long before all the conflict began.

"I leave the rest of this to you, true self. I'm sure you will make the right choice." Yuki's final words were mild and thoughtful. A lot of her anger seemed to have drained away and instead it almost seemed as though a bit of Houka's personality was melding into her.

"Settle it with him already princess! I believe that you know what the right choice is." Houka's final words seemed to be imbued with a lot of vigour and certainty, traits that were generally more synonymous with Yuki.

Slowly but surely both Houka and Yuki once more were starting to get closer to their true self – Hinata, who was always kind and gentle, yet when required she could be just as tenacious and filled with determination.

As Hinata nodded to her counterparts, both of them dissipated out of existence and returned back within Hinata, unifying all of their powers together into something immense. Imbued with all of this strength, Hinata started to perform what appeared like a mystical dance. She stood in place and moved her upper body and hands around in a rhythmic pattern which created a huge blue netted dome around her, one that was an evolution of the Hyuga's standard Rotation technique. The power of the earth below was absorbed by the dome, making it even sturdier and the power of flames enveloped it completely, making it such that anyone unfortunate enough to touch it would be met with a scorching fate.

High up in the sky even though he could not see Hinata, Naruto could see the massive dome surrounding her, which meant he could get ready to attack. These two techniques of theirs were the final ones Naruto and Hinata mastered together after their marriage before they split up. At the time these were the most powerful techniques they had ever created in search of the ultimate offense and the defence. In a way it was almost like a collision between the unstoppable force and the immovable object.

"Hinata…here I come!" Naruto locked on to Hinata's position and dove down from the heavens above along with his massive dragons, speeding towards her like a meteor falling from space. This was it – Naruto's single strongest technique. "UZUMAKI STYLE ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE: DRAGON'S ASCENSION!"

"I will overcome it!" Hinata moved her body around in a frantic dance that almost seemed impossible for the human body to perform, establishing her own strongest technique. "GENTLE STEP ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE: PROTECTION OF THE 64 PALMS!"

Thus, within seconds, there was a collision of unparalleled proportions, one that overcame anything and everything in sight. When those two equal yet opposite forces came into contact, it was as though a weapon of mass destruction had just gone off.

Boruto thus far was just watching in disbelief the power his parents possessed, but after that cataclysmic event he was incredibly concerned about their wellbeing, not being able to do much from high up in the sky and far away from the epicentre of the battle. Some time passed as the storm that was on going for a while now subsided and the ground was no longer burning. Nature was finally returning back to normal. All Boruto could see from the safety of being high up in the sky was the thick smoke rising from all around. Upon focusing his Byakugan to its absolute limit however, he saw what could only be described as a deep, nearly mile long crater on the ground. If he didn't know better he would have thought a meteor had just crash landed into the ground. Near the centre of that crater his parents were both lying on the ground face first and motionless. It seemed that both of them were okay to Boruto's relief but were severely exhausted from their exchange thus far. Yet to his shock he could see them stirring once more.

Both Naruto and Hinata were coughing from all the smoke around them as they both scrambled back up to their feet. There were very few occasions where they fought all out like this during their training and one could see why given the damage they were capable of causing.

Naruto blew away a large chunk of the smoke with one swing of his hand so that he could see, and sure enough Hinata was also standing some distance away from him. They were both utterly exhausted.

"I knew this would happen, but I had to do it because of how persistent you are. Hinata, have you come to your senses or do you still want to continue with this madness?" Naruto asked while taking in deep breaths.

"I…I won't lose!" With the lost bits of energy she had left, Hinata created a full body lion cloak and enveloped it with lightning. "Bolt (Boruto) Charge!"

She dashed towards Naruto in ragged breaths and simply tackled him with all she had. There was no elegance here, just desperation. Naruto crossed his hands and endured the full force of the hit, but lightning now surged from Hinata into him and through to the ground, pushing his body to its limits.

"Arrgghh…that hurts! Darn it Hinata, don't tell me you named our son after this attack of yours."

"So what if I did!?"

"Seriously? This is like the only lightning release technique you know and you're not even very good with it either. Between the two of us we had mastered all the other elements, but neither of us was any good with the lightning release. Yet you were always so insistent on wanting to master it. I never did get to know why."

Although Naruto didn't know it, it was in fact him who was the reason why Hinata insisted on wanting to learn the lightning release even though she had no affinity towards it. Naruto always wished for the two of them as a team to be able to master all five elemental techniques and lamented the fact they had one missing. Despite his efforts he was terrible at it and did not make much progress at all. Hinata on the other hand fared a little better, but not by much. Thus she kept trying and trying until she eventually managed to learn just one lightning jutsu, and she named it "Bolt" Charge. Perhaps amongst all the powerful and crazy techniques she knew, this was the one she was most proud of for mastering as she learned it simply to fulfil the wish of the one she loved. In a way the technique was imbued with feelings she had for Naruto. Thus in honour of those feelings, whether consciously or subconsciously, she named her son Boruto (Bolt). Those thoughts as she remembered them because of Naruto made it truly difficult to keep using the attack on him, the very person for whom she mastered it.

"I'll save Boruto with the very technique I named him after." Hinata replied in desperation, doing her utmost to not collapse under both the physical and mental stress.

"This is enough Hinata. This is more than enough. You don't need to save Boruto from me. I'm not trying to take him away. I want to protect him as well, as his father. We are both his parents. We can work together to give him a safe and happy life. You just have to let me. Let's just end this fighting already!"

"I'm fighting for all that I stand for. I can't lose to you. That would mean all the sacrifices I've made over the years would have been for naught. I can't allow that to happen. If you win your conviction would be stronger, so you would be proven right and I would be wrong. That is why I can't let you win, not at any cost."

"You keep talking about winning and losing, but who said that I ever wanted to win or defeat you in the first place?" Naruto asked a question that threw Hinata off completely, and during that moment he pushed her back and prepared an old technique from the Uzumaki clan. "Sealing Jutsu: Destiny Link!"

Naruto jabbed one hand into Hinata's midsection while with the other he jabbed himself, simultaneously placing a seal on both that linked one to the other in a profound way.

"W-What did you just do?" Hinata was confused by the seal that was placed on her as she never saw Naruto learning it. So far nothing seemed to be happening.

"You will find out soon enough. This is it – 100 PERCENT FULL POWER!" Thus Naruto absorbed the final ounce of nature's energy his body could hold and unleashed it all with whatever little of his own energy he had left. The blood red aura around him now appeared like flames burning all across his body. This was Naruto at his maximum but unfortunately for him he had already used the majority of his power throughout the battle with not much left in the tank anymore. But it didn't matter. He only needed to use one more jutsu to finally put an end to it all just in the way in which he planned, and that would only be possible in his full power state. "Forbidden Jutsu: Dark Seal Destruction!"

Naruto pushed one hand into the ground and activated one of the Uzumaki clan's most powerful sealing jutsus, so powerful in fact that only one other Uzumaki in history ever used it in the past to destroy an entire village overnight, and thus it was ruled to be forbidden. Naruto's version given his current dwindling state was nowhere near as large in scope, but it would suffice for the goal that which he wished to achieve.

The ground below Naruto in his immediate vicinity turned pitch black and ethereal shadowy hands started to rise out of the darkness below, reaching out towards anything material they could find.

Hinata quickly jumped away from the dark region on the ground as it wasn't particularly big and not knowing what it was capable of. Clearly this was also a technique that Naruto had learned after she left and once again she didn't know what the purpose of this sealing jutsu was, just like the previous one used on her. Nothing was happening to her thus far. Although she herself jumped out, Naruto stood amidst the darkness and the ethereal hands started to wrap all around his body.

And that was when Hinata felt the effect quite clearly.

She could feel whatever little energy she had left being drained out of her body against her will. She didn't know how but she looked up only to find that Naruto was in the same predicament. His face was contorted from the same sense of debilitation she was feeling right now. In fact, she could see clearly with her Byakugan that the hands wrapped around him were the cause of it all. Yet why was she feeling the same effect?

It was then that she also realised that the previous seal that Naruto placed on her was linking her to him and making her powers drain away in the exact same way as his. She dropped to her knees in both shock and fatigue.

A small smile crept across Naruto's face. "Have you realised what I've done? The seal I placed on you and myself, the destiny link, has joined us together. Because of it, whatever happens to me will happen to you as well. Whatever sensation I feel, be it pain or pleasure, you will share it with me. The other forbidden technique that I used, it drains away the energy of anything that stands within its area of effect. It doesn't matter if its friend or foe, or even the user itself – these dark hands will absorb everything until nothing remains. That is why it became forbidden in the first place. These are some of the Uzumaki clan's most powerful sealing techniques that I learned by visiting the ruins of Uzushiogakure ever since you left. But most importantly, do you know why I used them right now? Because they will ensure that whatever the outcome is after this battle, we will both share in it equally. You talk about winning and losing and how you must defeat me. Then do it Hinata – defeat me! I won't fight back anymore. But know that by defeating me you will suffer the same fate of defeat as well. If you win then I will win with you. If I lose then you will lose with me. The outcome of this battle has finally been decided, and this is what I wanted all along!"

It was at this point that Hinata realised what Naruto was truly planning from the start. He never wanted to win or to defeat her. She was the only one who was fixated on defeating him in order to validate her own self. All Naruto wanted was to rekindle the ties that bound them together, to remind her of all the times they shared together, and right now the memories were too much to bear and those ties were literally holding their outcomes together. Even after all these years, after all this suffering, after all this fighting, she just could not shatter the ties between them. There was nothing she could do other than accept that the ties that bound them together truly were unbreakable. The battle was going to end in a draw.

In that moment of realisation and truth, Hinata dashed towards Naruto and lunged at him, pushing him to the ground and landing on top of him. The ethereal hands now wrapped around both of them and absorbed the last remnants of their power. But Hinata didn't care about the physical strain. Emotionally she was broken down after all the years of struggle she faced from the time she left Naruto to this very moment. She just couldn't hold it back any longer. Thus she started to bawl her eyes out unlike ever before while sitting on top of Naruto and jabbing him in the face with all she had. Unfortunately, there was no strength left in any of her hits and they were more akin to gentle pokes. Despite that Hinata continued, and along with it spilled out everything that she held inside for all these years.

"Why won't you just give up? Why do you insist on making everything so difficult? I wanted to believe that I overcame our past, yet you remind me of it all and make me realise that I was just lying to myself. I want to say that I hate you and move on, yet I just can't. I…I love you. I always have…I always will. I can't change how I truly feel, no matter how much I try. I loved you so much, yet you betrayed me. I was so hurt…in so much pain…it was unbearable, the thought of leaving you. Yet I walked through that thorny path…through all that suffering just so that I could protect Boruto, the product of our love. Yet as soon as I saw his face after his birth, he reminded me of you. Just as my luck would have it, he took so much after you. It was as though fate itself was tying us together, this time through Boruto. I couldn't run away…I couldn't forget you…even if I tried. So I continued writhing in agony…the pain would never fade away. I missed you so much. Without you I felt so incomplete. All I ever wanted was for us to live together…to be a happy family together. Yet it was not meant to be. I wish it was different. I only wish none of this would have ever happened. That I could go back to where I belong."

Finally, every ounce of Hinata's energy was drained and her limp body dropped on top of Naruto's, her head resting on his chest. Despite all the pain and exhaustion, it was at that moment that she felt a deep sense of belonging as Naruto wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. It was this very feeling of happiness and contentment that she had sought for all these years.

"I missed you too Hinata. Without you I have been incomplete for all these years. Yet now as I hold you close to myself, I feel complete once again. I need you Hinata…because…I love you too." With those final words Naruto deactivated his technique and closed up the dark area beneath them.

Hinata didn't have the strength to say anything more, but as her consciousness faded away, she was truly at peace with herself, and thus all of her internal conflict washed away. She had finally returned to where it all started, where she truly belonged. And with that final thought, Hinata lost her consciousness.

Naruto's embrace around Hinata slackened as he himself was close to losing his own consciousness after that harrowing fight. But he turned his face to one side to see his son finally land on the ground at a distance and the barriers around him dissipate, with a concerned look on his face. Naruto raised his right hand in the air with a thumbs up in order to wipe away his son's worries. He could see a huge smile appear on the young boy's face as he started to run towards his parents.

But then it happened. Naruto's worst nightmare was about to begin.

"WATCH OUT, BORUTOOOOO!" He screamed in fear as a shadowy figure dropped down behind Boruto and with one swift strike to the back of his neck, knocked the boy unconscious.

One other ninja arrived next to him and picked up Boruto from the ground, placing the young boy unceremoniously on one shoulder.

"LET HIM GO! LET HIM GO RIGHT NOOOOOOOOOW!" Naruto roared as loudly as his voice would allow him.

"Shouting will not help you here Hokage. You are surrounded and are unable to fight back in your current condition." Darui explained in a calm and collected tone. Looking around Naruto could clearly see now that he was indeed surrounded by numerous Kumo shinobi in every direction. "It would appear that we were lucky. Both you and the Hyuga are already wiped out from your conflict and the young boy, our target, is free for the picking. All that remains is for me to put you both out of your misery."

This was bad. Horribly bad. As Darui walked towards the couple, Naruto couldn't even move with Hinata's full body weight on him. On top of this, he had all his remaining power drained by his own technique. There was nothing he could do.

"Oh shi….Hinata, wake up. WAKE UP!" He tried to shake his wife awake but she was out cold, and he himself was about to pass out soon.

Darui closed in on his targets and drew his sword from its hilt. He imbued it with lightning and raised it above his head, ready to deal the finishing blow. "Do not resent me Hokage. I hold no ill will towards you personally. I'm just following orders. The Raikage sends his regards."

Just as he was about to bring his sword down, during that moment of desperation when all hope seemed lost, a kunai came flying towards Darui, forcing him to back off into safety and away from Naruto and Hinata.

The special three pronged kunai landed right where Darui was previously standing, and out of nowhere a man wearing an orange spiral mask teleported on to the kunai's location and picked it out of the ground.

"W-Who are you?" Darui asked out of surprise. It wasn't every day that one saw people materialise out of nowhere in front of them.

"Tobi." The man in the hooded cloak wearing a spiral mask replied in one word.

Just from his name alone Naruto instantly remembered Tobi as the one he fought a while back to protect Boruto. Little did he know however that the man he fought back then and the man in front of him right now, even though they shared the same alias, were two different people.

Unbeknownst to Naruto, after over 20 long years he was staring at his father's back.

* * *

Finally, the conflict between Naruto and Hinata comes to an end. Next chapter may very well be the one you've all been anticipating since you first started reading this story. I'll leave a little teaser. It's going to be called "Reunion". How do you see Minato and the Kumo shinobi factor into this? I would love to know your thoughts as always.

On a slightly different note yet related note, quite some time ago I told you all that the conflict between Naruto and Hinata would be massive. Now I can ask you all whether you thought this lived up to those expectations. Did you like how it all finally came to an end?

Throughout the past few chapters, I wanted to highlight Naruto and Hinata's powers. They are quite different from canon, but I've already highlighted that long ago (some of their abilities are inspired from a certain game though so I wonder if anyone picked up on it). I definitely wanted to make Naruto very strong, but at the same time he is still human in this story, and not completely untouchable. He has his limits. Similarly, as you saw, Hinata is very strong as well. But the recurring theme I've tried to portray here is that even though Naruto and Hinata are individually very strong, the two of them when combined together is greater than the sum of their individual parts. That is where this reunion is headed towards and I hope you're looking forward to it.

That is all I have for now. Until next time, be well and take care!


	36. Another Favorable Ending?

**Another Favorable Ending?**

* * *

Ten years had passed since the fated battle between Naruto and Hinata.

Now the situation between them was completely different. To summarise, following the events of their clash and both of them re-kindling their eternal love, the two had made up and started living together as a happy family once again. But that was just the icing on the cake. Ever since their reunion, let's just say that the couple got down to doing some serious unfinished…"business"…and were now the proud parents of ten children.

Yes, 10 children over the course of 10 years. Naruto and Hinata would have given rabbits a run for their money when it came to the rate of reproduction, if the difference in gestation periods between humans and rabbits were not so widely different. Regardless, the couple and their near dozen children were celebrating a very special day today.

But before that – a quick introduction to their children. All of them bore striking similarities to their parents. The boys had inherited all of their father's signature traits while the opposite was the case for the girls, who looked just like their mother. They were almost like miniature versions of Naruto and Hinata, and because of how many of them there were, they were all given nicknames the same as their parents' names but with a number attached at the end to denote the oldest to youngest.

So in the order they born, the children were as follows: Naruto the first (9 years old), Hinata the second (8 years old), Naruto the third (7 years old), Hinata the fourth (6 years old), Naruto the fifth (5 years old), Hinata the sixth (4 years old), Naruto the seventh (3 years old), Hinata the eighth (2 years old), Naruto the ninth (1 year old) and finally Hinata the tenth, who was still a bun in the oven.

Naruto and Hinata were currently located in the kitchen of their mansion. Naruto sat on the kitchen table tending to some of the kids while Hinata was busy preparing a gigantic cake for the special occasion. Given that this was such a massive undertaking and she was pretty deep into her pregnancy with the latest child, making it difficult for her to freely move about the kitchen, Naruto the first was assisting his mother around the kitchen with the smaller tasks. Of all the boys the two had together after their reunion, their oldest son was the most calm and collected, taking a lot after his mother as opposed to his father. He was essentially a mama's boy and always loved helping out his mother as best he could. Today was no different.

Naruto on the other hand was swinging his youngest child in his arms, Naruto the ninth, who was a rather feisty toddler that would be set off at the slightest provocation. Thus he always needed all the attention in the world. While Naruto sat on the chair and played with the youngest, his 3 year old sibling, Naruto the seventh was climbing up his father's body to his shoulders as though he were a tree. He in particular was the most attached to his father among all his brothers and loved hanging around him whenever possible.

While all of this was going on, their two oldest sisters, Hinata the second and fourth, aged 8 and 6, walked into the kitchen and to their father. It seemed the younger of the two was hiding something behind her.

"Otou-sama, she has something that she'd like to give you on this special day." Hinata the second said with a smile, feeling proud of what her sister had created using some of the flowers in their garden.

"Oh, is that so? I'd love to see what my beautiful little daughter has got for me." Naruto replied enthusiastically.

Hinata the fourth extended towards her father a headband made of sunflowers. "This is for you. Me and Onee-sama made it together. Will you wear it?"

The innocent gesture of his daughters making him such a beautiful gift brought a smile to Naruto's face. "Of course I'll wear it! Here, I'm holding your little brother so will you put it on for me?"

The young girl nodded happily and Naruto did his best to move his head close enough to her without bothering the baby in his hands so that his daughter could put the flower headband on him. It looked a bit silly but that didn't matter to Naruto given that he loved his daughters with all his heart and any gift from them was worth the world to him.

Before Naruto could bask in the glory of his children's creation, his 4 year old daughter, Hinata the sixth came running into the room with a frantic look on her face.

"Otou-shama, you need to shee this. Onii-shama is doing shomething crazy!" She explained to her father the best she could, given that she was still in the process of learning to speak fully.

"Oh no, not again." Naruto knew instantly that his two middle sons were up to no good. They never were, and he needed to go ASAP. He handed his youngest son to his older sisters and asked them to take care of him for a bit so that he could go take a look at what kind of mischief his sons were up to.

In the main foyer of the mansion, Naruto the third (7 years old) was standing on the ground floor looking up at the balcony on the second floor where Naruto the fifth (5 years old) was standing atop the railing on the balcony with his back turned to his brother. He was getting ready to do a backflip off of the balcony and to the ground floor.

"GO! GO! GO! GO! GO! GO! GO!" The older brother cheered on the younger one to pull off the crazy stunt that he had come up with and persuaded the younger one into performing. Beside him also stood his little two year old sister who had no idea of what was going on but joined in the festivities with her older brother and shouted the encouragement along with him since it looked fun.

Naruto the fifth took a deep breath and like a fearless tiger, he did a graceful backflip off of the balcony and was now currently soaring through the air, throwing all caution to the wind and without any preparation of what was to come after the leap was made.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Naruto shouted at the top of his lungs and slid into the rescue, catching his son just in time and making the save.

 **A minute later…**

There were two visible bumps on the two boys' heads from the chop their father gave them.

"YOU IDIOTS! How many times have I told you not to do crazy stunts like that? What would you do if you had landed incorrectly and broke a leg?"

"But…but…we're shinobi right and the children of the great Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga. We should be able to do something so simple like that." The younger brother argued.

"In due time you two. In due time. Your mother and I didn't get strong overnight. It took us many years of training to get as strong as we are. You know what they say right; you can't run before you learn how to crawl." Naruto tried to impart upon his sons some valuable advice. "Plus you need to think how we would feel as your parents if either one of you got hurt. We'd feel terrible. Your mother's about to have another baby soon as well. The last thing you want to do is put her through undue stress. So please, think about us next time you do something like this."

"We understand. We're sorry." The two boys replied in unison as they looked down at the ground apologetically.

"It's fine, as long as you understand." Naruto patted them both gently on the head in response. He couldn't remain angry at his children for long. "Well, let's go meet up with your mother. She should be about done with the cake."

Naruto assembled all of their children in the dining room where they all sat around the huge dining table. He then helped his wife in carrying the multi-layered spectacle of a cake that she prepared for the special occasion. They then lit up the assortment of candles that Hinata had so meticulously placed all over the cake.

"Wow Hinata, this truly is impressive. You never cease to amaze me with your baking skills."

"Oh it's nothing really, given the occasion. This special day only comes around once a year. So children, I want you to work together in blowing out all the candles okay?" Hinata directed the question towards everyone sitting around the table, to which they nodded in sync. "Alright then, get ready."

Thus everyone stood up on their seats and clustered around the cake for their parents to give the signal.

"NOW!"

Everyone got into action and instantly blew out all the candles lined up around the cake, before the entire finally shouted in unison:

"HAPPY APRIL FOOLS DAY!"

* * *

Happy April Fools Day to you all! You didn't think I wasn't going to do an April Fools chapter did you? This is probably my favourite day on this website with all the great trolling going around.

Yes, yes, I know, I know. I suck. I'm terrible. I'm a dbag for writing stupid stuff like this. Yada yada. I get it. But I love to write silly stuff every now and then. It's refreshing. And I do love to troll as well lol.

So did you see this coming from a mile away given that I posted this chapter pretty late today, or did you fall for it at least for a bit? I did try to make it pretty outlandish/unrealistic and somewhat obvious as the chapter goes on, but it was a fun to write how Naruto and Hinata's family could be if they had an outrageous number of children. It's almost like a continuation of last year's April Fools chapter. The title of this chapter was a massive giveaway.

In any case, hope you enjoyed the little joke. So did you fall for any other April Fools prank, or better yet pranked anyone yourself? I'll get next chapter up within a week and it's gonna be pretty big. Hope you're looking forward to it. Until then, take care.


	37. Reunion

**Reunion**

* * *

Naruto got a glimpse of his father's back not knowing his true identity, before his consciousness finally faded away due to the gruelling battle he had with Hinata. She too was lying on him unconscious.

This left Minato to stand face to face against the enemy using his alias as Tobi, with the important task of protecting his son and his family.

"What do you want? Why are you interfering with our mission?" Darui asked the masked man standing in between him and his targets.

"Hand over the child." Minato made a straightforward demand, yet the deadly tone of his voice conveyed the consequences of not meeting said demands.

"Sorry, but that's the one thing I cannot do. This is the Raikage's order af-"

Darui couldn't even finish his words before a kunai flew straight towards him at blinding speed. He barely managed to raise his sword in time to block it, but in the blink of an eye and with a flash of yellow, Minato was right in his face and kicked him hard across his chest, sending him sliding backwards. Darui dug his sword into the ground in order to bring himself to a halt as three of his subordinates jumped in front of him in order to protect their leader.

" _W-What was that!? It was almost like he teleported!"_ Darui was in shock of what he saw. He just couldn't understand how such a thing was possible. He had heard of this somewhere before and wracked his brain to remember. The masked man standing across him would remind him soon enough.

Minato moved with purpose as he threw three more of his special kunai towards the three Kumogakure shinobi standing in front of him. All of their response was to duck in order to avoid the kunai, but at that very moment Minato created three shadow clones and once again with a flash of yellow the shadow clones teleported to the kunai and above the enemies before slamming three Rasengans on their backs, flattening them to the ground and knocking them out cold. Thus the shadow clones disappeared having done their job.

At that moment Darui remembered clearly in his mind what this was. _"That! That is the Yellow Flash's technique! It has to be! But how is that possible!? The Yellow Flash, one of Konoha's most powerful shinobi died over 20 years ago without any trace being left of him. Yet how is this possible?"_ Darui shook his head in order to calm his mind. _"No, I don't have time to think about this. I need to complete my mission at all costs!"_

Darui signalled even more of his men to take to the front and occupy Minato as he turned around and looked at the man carrying the unconscious Boruto with urgency. "Come on, we're getting out of here."

"But what about the enemy?"

"It doesn't matter. The rest of them will take care of him. We need to take the target to the Raikage. We can't risk failure here, not at any cost. NOW MOVE!"

As such, Darui along with a small group of his most trusty aides ran away from the battlefield with Boruto at hand, leaving the rest of their compatriots to take care of the enemy.

Minato was about to give chase but he was surrounded from all directions by about two dozen shinobi. Even if he did give chase, these guys would also be in hot pursuit of him, making it difficult for him to catch up to Boruto's captors. They needed to be taken care of.

Minato snapped his fingers and out of the blue as though materialising from thin air, a young man with blonde hair similar to him dropped down in front of him.

"You called?"

"I need your assistance Menma. Take care of these guys. I'm going after Boruto." Minato shared a high five with his son in order to symbolically tag him in to take his place before teleporting away into the distance with a flash of yellow and was hot on Darui's trail.

"Behold, the great Menma has descended upon the battlefield and graced you with his presence. Consider yourselves fortunate. Now listen up cuz I'm gonna say this only once. I'M HERE TO KICK ASS AND CHEW BUBBLE GUM…" Menma announced at the top of his voice as he chewed a piece of bubble gum in his mouth, before spitting it out with force. "AND I'M ALL OUTTA GUM!"

Even though the Kumogakure shinobi vastly outnumbered him, they were still a bit taken aback by this young man's fervour. Either he was as good as he sounded, or he was the biggest idiot in the world for picking a fight that he clearly could not win.

" _OH MAN…I've wanted to do that entrance for such a long time. It was picture perfect, how I managed to spit out the bubble gum at that EXACT moment and followed it up with the perfect catchphrase. I must look like the biggest badass right now."_ Menma gleefully said to himself within his mind. But as the initial euphoria of making the perfect entrance wore off, he noticed that he was surrounded from all directions by some very angry looking enemy ninjas. Clearly they did not take his brash statement in a positive way and were getting ready to electrocute him.

The complexion on Menma's face changed to a pale hue in response. "I hope you guys r-realise I was only j-joking right? It was all in good fun. So how about we a-all get along together and w-work something out? Ahaha…haha…ha."

Menma's laughter came to an abrupt halt as multiple bolts of lightning came flying his way. His enemies were in no mood to negotiate, leaving the Uzumaki to tuck his tail and run the opposite way for his life, all the while dodging lightning bolts that rained down all around him.

"That crazy old man! He left me in the middle of two dozen enemies and ran away. What the heck is wrong with him!? No one told me there'd be this many. I didn't sign up for this." Menma's eyes locked on to the whereabouts of a certain someone who was supposed to be his backup and he ran towards her like his life depended on it. "HELP ME MAMAAAAAAAAAA!"

Kushina was lying low for some time now and sensing the enemy from afar, but now her cover was clearly blown, forcing her to get up and shake her head side to side in desperation. "NO! Not this way! Don't come this way you idiot!"

But her pleading had no effect as Menma jumped behind her and was cowering in fear while holding on to the hem of her sleeve like a little kid. "I don't care! That old man left me high and dry. At least you're not gonna abandon me are you? Just look at how many there are. You can't possibly ask me to face them all by myself can you? I'm your helpless little baby boy after all."

"Look what you've done. We're now both surrounded." Kushina sighed in defeat as she was now standing in the middle of a whole bunch of Kumogakure shinobi. "I'm a sensory type ninja you know. I was supposed to be the support. You don't just give away your support's position like that. This's basic ninja 101!"

While his mother chewed him out for his mistakes, Menma started to look around to survey their current dire situation. And it was during that moment his eyes fell upon a lone medic girl about his age standing the furthest behind all of her fellow teammates. In a flash of yellow Menma disappeared from his mother's side and reappeared right behind the girl, trying his best to assume a suave temperament in order to impress her, yet unbeknownst to him appearing like a sleazebag instead.

"Heeeeeey girl, I saw you standing here all by yourself and looking lonely. So I thought I'd give you some company. You know all this fighting seems pretty pointless right? How about the two of us leave all this conflict aside and get to know each other? I'll even take you out to dinner, because I'm a real gentleman you see. Maybe this could be the beginning of a forbidden love between two enemies turned lovers in the middle of the battlefield. Romantic, is it not?"

His words sent shivers up the girl's back and the way in which he appeared made her not want him at any distance where she could reach him with a ten foot pole. Thus she took out a backup knife she kept for emergencies and swung it at him in both disgust and self-defence.

"HAHIII! Watch where you're swinging that thing! You could've turned me into beef jerky right there!" Menma voiced his disapproval as he jumped away from the attack with ease, given his unmatched agility. "And what the heck is this? I just offered to take you out to dinner and you try to turn me into dinner instead? Is that how you Kumogakure people respond to generosity?"

"MENMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! ARE YOU TRYING TO HIT ON SOME GIRL AGAIN!?" The young Uzumaki heard his mother's dreaded voice from a distance.

"Stop trying to cock-block me as always! I think I'm getting somewhere here." He retaliated.

"Menma…are you talking back to me? DID YOU JUST GIVE ME LIP!?"

Menma didn't have to look towards his mother to know that she was about to enter her infamous red habanero mode as her blood red hair started to flair around her and a red aura encompassed her whole body. He knew he was about to get destroyed by his own mother let alone the enemy if he didn't do something fast.

The sudden change in Kushina's attitude and the menacing atmosphere developing around her made the Kumogakure shinobi, who were dumbfounded for a while at the bickering between mother and son became serious. They now got ready to attack her in tandem and charged by lightning within their hands to do so.

Menma didn't waste one second and re-appeared next to his mother in an instant. He touched her once, teleporting her out of the place within a moment's notice, leaving only himself to contend with the enemy. "I'm gonna show you guys some mercy and take care of you myself. Trust me, you don't wanna see her when she gets angry."

Lightning bolts from all directions came flying towards Menma as the Kumogakure shinobi launched a consolidated attack to wipe out their target, but once again Menma disappeared with a flash of yellow and re-appeared high up in the sky this time.

"MASS SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!" He summoned what looked like several hundred shadow clones at once who all in turn created huge rasengans the size of a person in their hands. "MASSIVE RASENGAN MEGA BARRAGE!"

Menma flattened the ground below him along with his enemies by essentially carpet bombing the area with giant rasengans, ending the battle in a matter of minutes. As he dropped down to the ground and looked around, there were just bodies scattered everywhere. This was nothing new. Although he tried not to go overboard, his overwhelming speed and power was too much for most of his enemies to handle, leading to fast and decisive victories, which earned him the moniker of the "Yellow Flash 2.0".

"Consider yourselves lucky that your lives were spared. Personally I'm not one who likes the idea of getting blood on my hands." Menma said in a solemn tone. Although he was usually rambunctious in nature and loved to constantly brag about his abilities, Menma disliked conflict and valued life as being precious. As such he barely ever fought seriously, instead choosing to mostly take things very lightly in jest. However at the same time when it came to his parents, he wanted to support them in bringing an end to the age old struggle their family was embroiled in with their arch-enemies. He was always faithful to them and their cause due to the close and unbreakable bond he shared with them.

After the momentary respite, Menma quickly snapped back into his usual self, feeling proud of his achievements. "DARN MAN, sometimes I scare myself with how flippin amazing I am. I mean just look at this. I took out like twenty odd shinobi in just a few moves. I'm broken beyond repair and OP as all heck. Someone nerf me, please! I clearly must be breaking some kind of balance in this world right?" He asked some truly deep and philosophical questions in his mind. "If I were a girl I would seriously fall in love with myself. I don't understand women."

"Who are you talking to?"

Yet that line of questioning was broken by an all too familiar voice as Menma turned around to see his mother standing right behind him, prompting him to crouch down and shut his eyes in fear. "HAHIIII! Mama I'm sorry! I didn't mean to talk back to you or anything back there. Please don't kill me!"

Kushina sighed and gently tapped her son on the shoulder, motioning for him to get up. "I'll let it slide this time since you did take out the enemy and everything. Plus you really helped me by doing that. I'm not someone who's suited to fighting at the front lines, but you're always reliable when it comes down to it just like your father. So thanks for coming to your mother's aide. Now if only you could just stop being so brash and desperate about finding a woman."

"Oh oh oh, does that mean I'm safe!?"

"Yes, for now. We have more important matters to tend to. Let's go."

Menma jumped for joy given that he was no longer going to get torn apart by the wrath of the red habanero, but that happiness did not last very long once he followed his mother to their destination. In fact, he was now getting more annoyed by the second due to what he saw in front of him. "Dear mother…you wouldn't mind if I hit him will you? It'll be just once…but I'll make sure it really hurts!"

Kushina and Menma were currently standing next to Naruto and Hinata where Hinata was still laying on top of Naruto, both of them unconscious.

"No, of course not! Why would you want to hit your brother anyway?"

Menma's jealousy was pretty much visible on his face at this point. "I mean just look at him! He's lying there taking a nice little nap with his wife in his arms while I'm fighting off all the enemies. IT'S LIKE HE'S MOCKING ME IN HIS SLEEP!"

Kushina crouched down next to Naruto and caressed both his and Hinata's cheeks. Just seeing them together after so many years brought a smile to her face despite the dire situation that was developing around them. "Don't be so jealous son. This is what we've been working towards for so long. They are a married couple and they belong together. When the time comes I'm sure even you will find your significant other as well. You just have to be patient."

Despite his mother's pacifying words, Menma seemed unconvinced. "You say that but weren't these two married when they were my age? And they even had the boy in like a year's time. Man holy frig, they didn't waste a single second getting it ON did they!? "

"Don't try to make it sound dirty!" Kushina ordered with a slight blush due to the topic her son brought up. "While it is true that Naruto and Hinata got married and ended up having a baby as soon as possible, their case was special."

His mother's words prompted Menma to enter into deep thought and consider the circumstances he knew about his older brother. "Special…huh? The eldest son of the descendant of the Uzumaki clan leader…the eldest daughter of the Hyuga clan leader…their child, a product of the genetic combination of two of the strongest clans in history who is now sought even by the leader of another shinobi village. Hmmmmm…" Suddenly Menma's eyes widened and he gasped in shock as he realised the truth behind everything. "THIS! THIS WAS ALL PART OF A GREAT EUGENICS EXPERIMENT WASN'T IT!?"

"Huh?" Kushina gave her son a dumbfounded look, yet he still seemed convinced of his theory.

"You said it once didn't you, that our dad was great friends with her dad? Then this must have been your plan all along. As soon as you realised that the Hyuga had a daughter and the Uzumaki had a son, all of you together must have planned for those two to get married one day and produce a child of their own – a child with the combined power of the two legendary clans, who would grow up to be an unstoppable force, almost like a biological weapon. That is why both sides – you and dad as well as her father must have thought out exactly in great detail how to get your children together but at the same time make it look completely natural by having them fall in love, so that no one would ever suspect the weapon of mass destruction being produced right under their nose. It makes sense. IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW! The fact that the Hyuga clan leader started taking care of my brother…then his daughter falling in love with him…the two becoming teammates…them getting married and finally having the destined child. None of this was a coincidence. It was all part of your meticulous plan that you schemed out before they were even born. And it worked! It went just according to Keikaku!" (Keikaku means plan)

"Hmmm…when you put it that may it does sound quite convincing. Maybe we did plan it all out. Who knows?" Kushina replied with a sly smirk, clearly yanking her son's chains just for the heck of it.

Yet Menma appeared even more startled this time. "D-D-D-Does that mean you are planning to do the same with me? You aren't going to use your own son in what can only be described as essentially a livestock selective breeding exercise in order to produce offspring with the desired phenotypic traits. NO WAY! I refuse to be part of this grand eugenics experiment of yours." Even though he refused vehemently at first, suddenly a realisation popped into Menma's head as he looked at his older brother and his wife lying peacefully on top of him. "W-Wait a minute…leaving aside the experimentations and biological weapons…Uzumaki Naruto, he did end up getting a hot wife as part of this package deal. I didn't consider that at first but when you think of it like that, it doesn't seem so bad after all. Does that mean you've found like an estranged daughter of some super powerful clan somewhere for me to get married to? WHOA! Actually now that I've contemplated on it really hard, I don't mind being part of your crazy experiment after all. Feel free to use me as you please mommy. You do have plans for me as well right?"

"We don't." Kushina looked at him emotionlessly and gave him a deadpanned response.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Menma dropped to his knees and started to wallow in despair. It seemed he wasn't going to be finding his significant other any time soon after all.

While her younger son was crying tears of sorrow, Kushina gently caressed her older son's face. It had been so long since she last touched him. As a mother, that feeling of her son's warmth moved her to the very core. After long last she would be able to reunite with him. That thought alone was able to help her hold back the tears and strengthen her conviction to bring an end to the current crisis. Thus she stood up and got ready to leave.

"Menma, I'll be going on ahead. It looks like they really exhausted themselves in that last fight and are out cold. Can I leave you here to look out for them and relay to them the message once they regain consciousness?"

"Uh…are you sure you don't want to do it yourself. I thought you'd been waiting to meet him for so long."

"It due time Menma. In due time. Right now is not that time. We need to save Boruto right now."

"Very well, if that is what you want, then you can leave it to me."

Upon hearing her son's reply, Kushina took her leave and headed towards her next destination, leaving Menma to wait and bide his time.

It took several hours but finally Hinata started to stir back into consciousness, and as she did so she felt this very nostalgic warmth from beneath her, which made her already heavy body not want to get up at all. Her movements also started to wake Naruto up as well.

"Ah…my head, it hurts. But…what's that soft feeling across my chest." Naruto asked as he tried to get both his thoughts and bearings in place.

At that moment both couple's eyes met each other as their faces were just inches apart.

Once Hinata realised the situation she was in and how she was essentially smothering Naruto from on top, she gave a quick "EEEEEP" and jumped off of him. "W-W-W-W-What is going on here!?"

Naruto was going to reply to her as he sat up but his heart nearly jumped to his throat once he remembered what had happened just before he passed out.

"Are you two done yet with your little lovey-dovey wake up ritual?" Menma with his back turned to the two asked them in an irritated tone. "While the two of you were out cold, the child's been taken by Kumogakure. That's all I needed to say, the rest is up to you. Plus now that I'm done with my duty of watching over you two to ensure you didn't get attacked while unconscious, I'm out."

And with his job done, Menma disappeared from the scene with a flash of yellow.

Neither Naruto, nor Hinata had the time to contemplate on who it was that just gave them that message as a much bigger dilemma was upon them. Their son had just been kidnapped.

Just one look at Naruto's face told Hinata that this wasn't a lie. In disbelief she instantly activated her Byakugan and scanned every direction, yet Boruto was nowhere to be seen. The idea of him being taken by Kumogakure was a nightmare come true, an absolutely terrifying prospect. But she had no time to waste on such emotions right now. She needed to head towards Kumogakure as fast as humanely possible to save her son.

Just as she was about to take off, Naruto quickly grabbed her hand and brought her to a halt. "Wait Hinata!"

"Let go off my hand this instant. I have to save him. I HAVE TO SAVE BORUTO AND YOU'RE NOT GOING TO STOP ME!" She shouted at him with the most frightening of the Hyuga's glares.

"Listen…" Naruto requested as he held on to her hand.

"This is the same as what happened 8 years ago. Boruto was in danger yet you chose Konoha over him and me. You can do that again, I don't care. But I will fight the entirety of Kumogakure if necessary to protect my precious child. Even if I'm torn limb from limb…even if I have to sacrifice my very life, I WILL SAVE HIM!"

"Listen to me…" Naruto said once more, still not letting go of Hinata's hand.

"LET GO OFF MY HAND RIGHT NOW!"

"I SAID LISTEN TO ME!" Naruto shouted back this time with all his might, startling Hinata to a halt, which stopped her struggling at least momentarily. "If only you'd listen for a second. I'm not holding you right now to stop you. I'm holding you so that I can join you."

"What?" Hinata's eyes widened from what she just heard. She was in disbelief.

Naruto finally let go off her hand and stood up next to her. "You heard me. I want to join you in this fight to save Boruto, as his father."

"B-But what about the fact that you're the Hokage? I'm a missing nin and Boruto isn't even recognised as a member of Konoha. Even as the Hokage there is no way you will be able to justify going into war with Kumogakure for us."

"Who said I was going into war against Kumogakure as the Hokage? I'm going to fight them not as the Hokage, but as Uzumaki Naruto, for kidnapping my child. I warned the Raikage once that he would pay a heavy price if he threatened my family in any way, shape or form. Yet he didn't heed that warning. Now he will pay the price for his transgressions."

"If you do this you may even be overthrown from your position as the Hokage for starting a battle with Kumogakure for no justifiable reason in the village's eyes. This will have been your own personal fight. The village would most likely never accept that."

"I don't care. I don't care if I'm no longer accepted as the Hokage after this. I don't care if my livelihood gets taken away. Heck, I don't even care if they decide to kick me out of the village as a result of my actions. All I care about right now is saving my one and only child and there is no one in this world that can stop me. All those years ago I made the greatest mistake of my life by letting my family slip through my hands. But I won't make the same mistake again. This time I will protect both of you with every fibre of my being." Naruto's words were filled with the utmost conviction and the look on his face reflected the silent yet overwhelming anger pent up within him. Just from that look alone Hinata knew that he meant every word he said and was ready to fight to the bitter end for their son.

"It seems that while we were busy fighting each other, we forgot to protect the one for whom we were fighting in the first place. So what do you say Hinata, shall we put our differences aside and join together once more to achieve our one common goal – to save our precious child?" This time Naruto looked Hinata dead in her eyes and extended towards her his right hand – the hand of reconciliation.

This was it. This was the Naruto Hinata had wanted all those years ago to stand by her side, the one who valued his family above everyone else. And now he was right here – the very Naruto that she had fallen in love with so long ago. There was no more hesitation left within her. The internal conflict that plagued her from the moment she left his side was no longer. Hinata knew exactly what she needed to do.

Thus she extended her hand towards him in return and placed it on top of his, their bond finally reforged after remaining un-shattered through all the hardship and heartache. Their shared single-minded determination linked them together in a profound way, taking their relationship above and beyond to the next level and imbuing them with a new power – the power of the "Familial Ties".

"Naruto-kun…let's save Boruto, together." Hinata said to Naruto with a heartfelt smile, as she could feel his presence resonate within her just through their touch, something that made her feel stronger than ever before.

Naruto nodded with one of his signature grins, as he too could feel her presence within him through their touch, making him feel ever stronger. As such he gripped her hand even more tightly. "Then it's settled. After all these years we have one more mission to accomplish together, and this time it will be the most important one of our lives. We've never failed before, neither will we fail here. After all with our powers combined, we ARE the greatest team of all time!"

Thus Naruto and Hinata with a reinvigorated resolve rushed towards Kumogakure in order to rescue Boruto, the proof of their unbreakable bond.

* * *

There you have it. At long last, Naruto and Hinata reunited. It was certainly a slow burn to get here, but I do think the buildup is what makes something special. What did you think about the reunion?

There were also a bunch of silly little references in this chapter to several anime/games by Menma. I will give big props next time to those who can identify them. Certainly I love those lines and find them hilarious. Plus Menma is a silly yet fun character to write. Hope you guys feel the same way.

That will be it for today. Let me know your thoughts as always, and after this pretty monumental chapter I'm out until next time.


	38. Combined Will

**Combined Will**

It's been some time since the last update but I had some stuff going on that kept me busy. I'm back now and ready to get back into writing. Glad to have you all back as well. So let's get started.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata currently hid nearby the entrance to Kumogakure with the village in their sight. They were both ready to initiate the operation to rescue their son who had been kidnapped by the Raikage's orders.

Nearly a decade had passed since the two last worked as a team, yet right now the objective at hand was the most important one they ever had to accomplish in their times as a team together. They had never failed in a mission before, but this time above all others failure was absolutely not an option – in that they were both determined.

"It has been a long time since we last got ready initiate a mission together. Yet this feeling, it's just so familiar." Naruto said to his wife as they both prepared to infiltrate Kumogakure.

"So it has been a long time indeed. Yet the stakes now are higher than ever before. Many would consider what we're about to do nothing more than a suicide mission, heading into the enemy's stronghold with no prior preparation or backup. Yet I just don't feel any hesitation, just like old times. I think…with you by my side, we can achieve anything we set our minds to."

"You're right. We've never failed before with our powers combined. We aren't about to start now. Let's make this happen, for our family…for Boruto. I can vaguely sense his presence deep inside the village. We've got no time to waste. We're heading in right through the front door!"

"Never one to embrace the subtleties, it seems you've barely changed Naruto-kun." Hinata replied with a light smile as it brought back memories of yore. "But I agree. Time is of the essence. I can pinpoint his location once we're inside. Let's do this the old fashioned way."

Thus both Naruto and Hinata braced themselves, and with the utmost determination they charged right through the gates of Kumogakure. However, it didn't take long before they were intercepted by the two guards that were stationed at the gates, ready to stop the intruders.

"HALT INT-"

Before they could even finish their sentence, a powerful gust of wind hit them square in the face like a brick wall and the two were blown away off their feet and landed unceremoniously on the ground several yards away, out cold.

Instantly a huge commotion broke out in the area as civilians started running for their lives and the other Kumo ninja regrouped to call for backup as soon as they realised who it was that had just arrived at their doorstep.

"Hinata, can you find Boruto?"

"Give me one second. I'll locate him right now." Hinata activated her Byakugan and pushed them to the very limit to scan across the village in order to find her son.

"HQ! WE'RE AT THE VILLAGE ENTRANCE AND THE HOKAGE JUST SHOWED UP AND KNOCKED OUT THE GUARDS! WE NEED BACKUP IMMEDIATELY! I REPEAT, WE NEED BACK RIGHT NOW!" One of the Kumo shinobi informed headquarters over his wireless communicator in a panic. Naruto was after all very well-known across the entire shinobi world as one of the strongest alive.

"Unit, advise us on any other personnel with the Hokage. What is the situation?" Someone from HQ replied.

"He was just one other person with him, a Hyuga from the looks of it. No backup from what we can tell. What is going on HQ!? Why is the Hokage here and why is he attacking us!?"

"We do not know but you…..wait…."

"HQ? What's the matter? Do you copy!?"

"All units across Kumogakure, this is HQ and we have an urgent message directly from the Raikage! The Hokage has just infiltrated the village and is to be considered hostile. There will be no negotiations. We'll be sending the very best from HQ as backup shortly to eliminate him. Intercept and halt him as best you can until then."

The few Kumo ninja that were unlucky enough to be caught in this mess with Naruto at the village entrance were shaking in their boots to face him without any backup or help. He was after all the Hokage. How could HQ expect them to intercept him on their own?

That momentary hesitation was all it took for Naruto to blow them all away with another fierce burst of wind, clearing out the path for him to move further into the village.

"I found his exact location! He's at the other side of the village, at the HQ from the looks of it! There're a lot of powerful people around him…the Raikage himself as well I think. We have to hurry before they do anything to him!"

Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. "If that fiend even thinks about doing anything to our son, I will tear him limb from limb!"

Naruto and Hinata didn't waste a single more second and dashed right through the village and to the Raikage's headquarters. They jumped from rooftop to rooftop as the commotion got louder around them until they reached the village's centre, which had a large open plaza where the major pathways from the various districts of the village met up, surrounded by a plethora of shops and buildings as one would expect. Normally such a business hub would be filled with tons of people, but as Naruto and Hinata landed on the pavement, the commotion around them had died down and not a single civilian was in sight. The entire place was deserted and all the people had been evacuated. Yet they could sense that they were not alone. Far from it.

As Hinata looked around with her Byakugan, she could see dozens upon dozens of shinobi starting to pile up all around them on the rooftops of the surrounding buildings until they were all in plain sight. There were now over a hundred of them and increasing.

Naruto and Hinata were outnumbered to say the least, but the worst part was the fact that they were both feeling the after effects of their battle. The two were bruised and beaten up from their earlier encounter, having exhausted all of their powers in order to best each other. Even though they both collapsed, it was only for a short while before they regained consciousness and came running all the way to Kumogakure in order to save their son. Neither of them got a chance to properly recuperate, and now that they were pushing themselves to the limit against the odds, they were feeling the pain and exhaustion rack up on their bodies.

"There're too many of them. As I am right now, I can barely access even a third of my full power." Naruto whispered to Hinata, who was standing with her back pressed against his as they were both surrounded from all sides.

"I'm the same. In our current state it'll be difficult to continue fighting like this. More importantly, I can see several very powerful shinobi heading our way. This is bad…but I think there's a way to overcome these odds." Hinata focused and summoned forth her two counterparts, Houka and Yuki, but both of them looked drained as well and barely had much power left.

"Hinata, I don't know if in their current state even those two would be able to make much of a difference."

"Individually, maybe not, but if we were to combine our powers, we will have a far better chance."

Naruto's eyes widened as he realised what Hinata was hinting at. "That's right! If I were to join together with one of them, we would be far stronger in our tailed beast mode even if it's not at full power."

At that point both Naruto and Hinata looked directly at Yuki. This was their best option.

"Eh? True self…you're not expecting me to…after all these years…oh…you are." Yuki replied reluctantly.

"This is the only way. Your fusion with Naruto-kun is by far the strongest form we have in our arsenal. You need to lend him whatever powers that you have left. We need to do everything we can in order to save Boruto!" Hinata's overwhelming determination was shared between her counterparts and any hesitation they may have had of working with Naruto after all these years were gone.

Thus Yuki nodded her agreement. "I can feel your conviction true self. I don't feel any conflict from within you any longer. It is almost as though you are returning to your old self…and along with you…so am I. I do not feel much disdain towards the other self…towards Houka…and neither towards him as well." She said while looking at Naruto. "However, what I do feel is a DEEP seething anger towards those who have chosen to take Boruto from us. That is why let us combine our powers together to overcome all odds!"

"I feel the same way, so let's do this – Uzumaki Clan's Secret Technique!" Naruto lifted his shirt and opened up the seal on his stomach once more, one that he had specifically put in place many years ago in order to join together with Hinata's counterparts. As soon as he finished absorbing Yuki's essence within his body, he closed the seal once more and dropped to his knees instantly.

The Kumogakure shinobi that had been gathering thus far were looking for a chance to attack, and when saw the Hokage in a moment of weakness, they all took form at the command of their highest ranked superior. "Everyone now's our chance to wipe out the Hokage as per the Raikage's orders. Synchronize all of your attacks and cast a combined THUNDERBOLT!"

The Kumo shinobi all raised their lightning shrouded hands towards the sky, causing a huge ball of lightning to form in the sky above Naruto which only got bigger by every passing second.

While this happened Naruto was still on his knees writhing in pain. Yuki's presence within his body was overwhelming and he was having troubles adjusting to it after all these years. He could feel her rage within every fibre of his being and it was difficult to accept it all. Naruto was really starting to understand truly how emotionally determined Hinata was to save Boruto. However, all this anger and resentment that she felt, there was an unquestionable purity to it all. It was derived from a mother's love for her son and the uncompromising will to protect him. Naruto could feel first-hand how much a mother loved her child and how far she was willing to go for him. This was a part of Hinata that he wasn't there to witness develop, and it gave him a greater appreciation for her in the process.

" _What's the matter? You seem shaken. Don't tell me you were expecting to find peace once we joined together. That's not the part of Hinata Hyuga I represent."_ Naruto heard the voice of Hinata's counterpart within his mind, and it brought back some of his focus. _"It seems as though you're struggling to accept me after so long. Therefore let me remind you that you will not find any calm here, only chaos. I have but one goal in mind right now and that is to save Boruto from those who have abducted him. Towards them I feel a burning animosity. If the two us are to join and we are to become greater than the sum of our individual parts, then you must also share the same pain and enmity as me. Tell me, is that the case?"_

Naruto chuckled for a split second, only for it to fade away into a distorted look on his face. _"Pain? For years I have been separated from the one that I loved most. For years I didn't even get the chance to meet my child, my progeny even once since his birth. I lost the one thing that I sought after my whole life…my family. Therefore pain and suffering are concepts all too familiar to me. You speak of enmity? Just when I found my family and was on the verge of reuniting it, someone just walks in and tries to split it apart once more. No…I don't think you understand the resentment that I feel right now. If those are the emotions you're talking about, then we are not much different after all."_

" _Well said."_ Yuki had a gleeful tone to her voice as she said those two words, one that was very much unlike her.

Outside of Naruto's psyche, Hinata looked up and saw the ball of electricity above Naruto growing dangerously unstable. "Naruto-kun, snap out of it! They're about to attack!"

"Get back and leave this to me. We've got this!" Naruto advised Hinata in haste and she along with Houka heeded his words and jumped as far away as possible. She knew that with her other counterpart, Naruto would be able to handle this.

"COOPERATION NINJA ART: THUNDERBOLT!" The Kumogakure shinobi launched their attack in unison and a giant bolt of electricity crashed down on to Naruto's position.

" _Brace yourself! INITIATING TAILED BEAST MODE!"_ Yuki's words resonated within Naruto's mind and instantly he could feel an immense surge of power coursing through his veins. When he combined with Houka, with her power came a sense of peace and serenity. Yet now it was completely different. This power was accompanied by feeling a chaos within him, and he gave himself up to it. A think yellow shroud vaguely shaped like a tiger covered Naruto's body as the lightning strike hit him directly, bringing him down to all fours.

A lightning attack of this great a magnitude would have fried any normal person, but Naruto took it in strides by digging the tail of the newly formed cloak around his body into the ground in order to re-direct the electricity into the earth with ease.

"DON'T LET UP!" One of the enemy shinobi shouted to the others as they kept their attack going, but they were getting flustered given that it just wasn't working as expected.

Naruto chuckled at those words. _"This is nothing. We've been through worse when training with Itachi."_

" _So we have indeed during the old times. Now, are you ready to initiate the counterattack and put an end to this?"_

" _Let's do it."_

A deafening roar broke out across the entirety of Kumogakure as though a wild beast of unparalleled proportions had been unleashed. Naruto's carnal scream tore through the ears of all the surrounding shinobi and threw them all off from their formation, ending their technique immediately. He looked around to see the Kumo shinobi reeling and prepared to unleash all of his rage.

"Witness…THE LAND'S WRATH!" Naruto shouted at the top of his lungs and clenched his fists as tightly as possible. He then slammed them both on to the ground, causing the land's unbridled energy to rise up from the ground and ravage everyone and everything caught in attack's area of effect.

As the aftereffects of the technique started to wear off, Kumogakure's central plaza was no longer – replaced by a razed battlefield with bodies strewed about, out cold. In the midst of it all Naruto stood tall in his glowing yellow beast-like cloak and a long tail.

Hinata jumped back next to him along with Houka, who had helped keep her safe from the crossfire and even she was surprised to see the carnage Naruto had caused in a matter of moments. She remembered how powerful their tailed beast forms were when they joined together as one in battle. And perhaps the most intriguing part was that neither Naruto nor her were anywhere near their full power right now.

"That takes care of them. It's time for us to head to our destination." Naruto suggested to Hinata as he awaited her directions.

"No, not yet. There's more."

Just as Hinata said so, two more shinobi arrived at a distance in front of them – a calm looking woman with blonde hair, and a rough, dark skinned and white haired man. Just one glance at them and one could tell they weren't your average shinobi. In fact they were some of Kumogakure's strongest.

Omoi looked around and was a little taken aback by the destruction that he saw all around him. But he regained his focus almost instantly and now glared at Naruto. "So you're the one who did all this? You're gonna pay for walking into our village and turning it into a battlefield."

"We did not wish to do this but we had no choice. The Raikage took the most precious thing from us. We're simply here to retrieve it. But if the Kumogakure shinobi continue to get in our way, we will have no choice but defeat each and every one of them in order to take back that which is rightfully ours." Naruto gave a curt reply without a single bit of hesitation in his tone.

Omoi seemed visually angry at the response, but before he could say anything Samui got in front of him and lifted her hand in order to stop him.

"Enough talk. The Raikage's orders are to eliminate the Hokage and his aide. Draw your weapons, because that is what we're going to do right now." Samui interjected in a cold and emotionless voice as she drew her blade and prepared to engage, prompting Omoi to do the same.

"Very well. If that is your intention, then we will do the same." Naruto replied as he himself caused two earth swords to rise up from the ground in front of himself and Hinata, which they both drew in order to initiate the fight.

Thus another battle was about to begin.

 **Elsewhere in Kumogakure…**

Minato was currently hiding in the shadows deep within the Raikage's headquarters.

"Are you near him right now?" Minato heard his wife ask over the wireless earpiece he was wearing.

"Yes, I'm close. I can tell I'm getting close to the seal you placed on him. Normally I could have directly teleported to that seal but this place teeming with security ever since they brought in Boruto. Not to mention the Raikage himself is around along with several other very powerful individuals. Teleporting in and extracting Boruto hasn't been an option with all those people around. So I've had to keep some distance and an incredibly low profile in order to stay hidden." Minato whispered calmly. "How's everything over there? I can vaguely sense something happening at a distance."

"Yeah, Naruto and Hinata just barged in through the front door and a massive fight broke out in the middle of the village."

"Are you serious? I thought Naruto might do something like that but Hinata too? This could turn into a real mess. Wait a sec…"

"What's the matter Minato?" Kushina asked out of worry.

It took nearly a minute for him to respond but he now seemed enthusiastic. "Actually, maybe the two of them charging out there may not have been for naught. The Raikage along with his aides seem to have left the HQ and the security around Boruto has thinned out. I should be able to take the rest out and rescue him."

"Wait, but if the Raikage left with his aides then that means…" Kushina's voice just dropped at the thought.

"Oh darn it; he's headed towards Naruto and Hinata." Minato finished her thought and was now just as concerned.

"This is REALLY not good. Those two fought tooth and nails against each other and haven't even recovered from that ordeal. They've been fighting all the other Kumogakure shinobi as well. If the Raikage shows up now, they'll be in big trouble."

"We need to do something and fast."

Both Minato and Kushina were in a state of panic when a third voice came in through their communicator.

"You two worry too much. Leave it to me. I'll go and help them out." Menma announced proudly.

"It's the Raikage we're talking about here. This is not something to take lightly."

"Your mother is right. It's not just the Raikage but his closest aides as well, who are all very powerful. Not to mention there are probably still more of Kumogakure's forces they could summon. The situation is looking rather dire."

"Eh, stop worrying. It'll be fine." Menma brushed his parents' concerns off nonchalantly. "I mean just look at me. I'm like the main protagonist of every shounen manga story. Good looks, overpowered as all heck, legendary lineage, born from super sexy parents with crazy backstory. My goodness man, I'm juiced to the gills with plot armour. There's no way anything bad could ever happen to me."

Both Kushina and Minato sweat dropped at their son's statement.

"Menma, this isn't a video game. It's serious!" Kushina shouted through the communicator.

"That's the point! Just take care of your side of things. I'm going in hot." Thus within a moment's notice, Menma was gone like the wind.

"Menma…MENMA!" Kushina shouted her son's name but he wasn't on the other end of the communicator any longer. "Darn it, even he's gone in now!"

"We don't have much choice but to trust them and do our parts. I'll talk to you in a bit." Minato replied calmly.

"Okay."

As the communication between the two cut out, Minato slowly made his way towards Boruto, taking out the remaining security around the HQ from the shadows until eventually he reached the room holding the boy.

Minato opened the door and found the Boruto chained up in a corner of the room. He rushed to him and removed the tape on his mouth as a start.

"WHO ARE YOU? GET AWAY FROM ME YOU FREAK!" Boruto shouted at the top of his lungs, struggling to get away from the suspiciously cloaked man wearing a mask.

Minato realised the situation given his attire and removed both his mask and cloak in order to ease the young one's worries. "It's okay Boruto. I'm here to free you. I'm your grandfather. Kushina, your grandmother must have mentioned me to you before."

Boruto looked at his grandfather closely as well as the attire he wore, which he remembered from the previous encounter with Tobi and realised that this person matched the description his grandmother gave him. "You're the one she mentioned! Was this part of your plan? The last thing I remember was my parents fighting and then the next thing I know some weird people locked me up in this place. What the heck is going on?"

"No, this wasn't part of the plan. You were kidnapped by shinobi from an enemy village to the one that your father is from. They brought you here on orders from their leader." Minato explained as he freed Boruto from his shackles.

"W-Why would they want to capture me?"

"Well, aside from the fact that you're the child of the Hokage which makes you a very valuable person, I've heard some disturbing rumours that the Raikage has been looking to obtain the Byakugan for himself. Essentially…the special eyes that you have."

Boruto gave an audible "eep" in response, but Minato gently patted him on the head to calm him down. "Don't worry Boruto. As long as I'm here, I won't let that happen. Besides, not everything about this turned out bad. Like we envisioned, since you got captured, your parents joined forces in order to save you."

"Really!?" Boruto's face lit up like a light bulb at the thought of his parents reunited. It was painful to watch them fight.

"Well yes, but unfortunately the bad part is that they rushed into the heart of the enemy territory and are fighting against all the odds despite being wiped out from their battle against one another. The positive again is that this has allowed me to get to you with relative ease."

"You have to help them! They're in trouble!"

"Of course. I have a few others with me who can help as well. So let's go and find a way to get your parents out of this mess and get out of here." Minato suggested before deciding to take a small time out. "By the way Boruto, I believe I haven't formally introduced myself to you yet. I'm Minato Namikaze and as I mentioned earlier, I'm your grandfather. Hmmm…I kind of understand what Kushina meant before when she said she felt really old introducing herself to her grandchild, but regardless, I'm really glad we were finally able to meet. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time."

"I'm Boruto Namikaze but I suppose you already knew that. I've heard quite a bit about you from grandma, and you seem just as cool as she mentioned."

"Thanks Boruto, but we'll have to leave the rest of the pleasantries for another time. We need to make our way out of here."

Boruto nodded in agreement and thus the duo of grandfather and grandson got to securing an escape route out of the Raikage's HQ.

 **Elsewhere in the middle of the village…**

After a gruelling back and forth exchange, slowly but surely Naruto and Hinata were starting to get an upper hand in the stalemate against Samui and Omoi. But the fatigue and injuries were really starting to take their toll on their bodies at this point as the two breathed heavily and struggled to keep going. Yet giving up was simply not an option for the sake of their child, regardless of their physical condition.

But the situation was only going to get worse from here since right as they were about to re-engage, three more people arrived at the scene, ones who would prove the greatest challenge thus far. Ay along with his two aides, Bee and Darui looked around to survey the situation before finally bringing their gazes on to the two intruders.

"Samui, Omoi, you've done enough. Stand down. We'll handle the rest from here." Raikage ordered his subordinates while glaring daggers into Naruto.

"RAIKAAAAAAAGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs and rushed right at Ay without wasting a single more second and threw a punch with all he had. But Ay easily grabbed his wrist with his own and stopped the punch right in front of his face. "I warned you before not to mess with my family, yet you didn't listen! Now I'm going to make you pay for what you did to my son!"

Naruto pushed with whatever strength he had left, but Ay held his fist in place with ease, lightning sparks now flying from his hands. The older man was completely unphazed until a sideways smirk appeared on his face. Ay then suddenly twisted Naruto's right hand nearly a full 360 degrees, horribly dislocating his forearm from the elbow.

Naruto held in a muffled groan of intense pain, but the next moment the Raikage kicked him right across the solar plexus, sending him flying backwards.

"NARUTO-KUN!" Hinata grabbed Naruto in mid-air and helped him land safely, but the damage was already done and he was coughing up blood. "A-Are you okay? You've sustained internal injuries and your right hand…it's…it's…completely broken."

Naruto knew this already given that he could barely feel any sensation in his forearm as it dangled from his body without any control. Yet he still mustered up the power needed to stand on his feet, despite the injuries.

The Raikage was no joke. Even his simple punches and kicks were imbued with a devastating surge of lightning that caused internal damage to the victim's organs and nervous system. Given the state Naruto and Hinata were in right now, the situation looked truly grim.

"This animosity between our villages stems from an age old feud between the first Raikage and the first Hokage. Yet now we have the opportunity to finally put it all to rest. Darui, why don't you end this?" Raikage ordered his aide in a hoarse voice.

"Very well, if that is what you wish Raikage-sama, then so it shall be done. STORM RELEASE: LASER CIRCUS!" Darui raised both hands in front of him, creating a glowing halo around them that shot intense beams of light towards his enemies, capable of wiping them out completely in just a few hits.

Naruto and Hinata knew they needed to move, but just as the beams of light shot out from the halo around Darui's hand, a figure dropped right in front of them and erected some kind of a barrier in front of him. The beams of light hit the barrier and disappeared completely, having been teleported far away into the distance.

Darui was shocked to see his technique get deflected so easily by this newcomer. Someone who was able to do so was clearly no ordinary shinobi.

Yet Menma paid no heed to the nasty glances he was getting from the enemy and turned towards Naruto and Hinata with a grin. "Man you two don't look to be in good shape. I guess you're been through quite a lot. I do have to say though, I like your style. Barging through the main gate and starting an all-out fight in the enemy's territory despite being in such terrible physical condition due to a previous battle – it's such an ill-advised and bad idea that I absolutely love it. Just the kind of thing I can get behind. Although technically the whole point of being a ninja is to sneak around and stuff…I mean it's in the name, but who the frig really cares about stealth anyway? Stealth is for losers when you can kick ass straight up. That is why the great Menma is here to lend you his assistance. Rest assured, with me by your side victory is all but a certainty."

Thus to the confusion of Naruto and Hinata, Menma joined the fray.

 **Far in the distance…**

The masked man, Fugaku laid in wait for the perfect opportunity to strike.

"This is it. Any second now the time will be upon us to take the first step in initiating Madara's will. And when that will is brought forth, the shinobi world will never be the same again!"

An ominous declaration.

* * *

All I'll say is that things are going to get a bit dark over the next couple of chapters. Although it's been mentioned for a while now, but the whole concept of "Madara's Will" will become very important from here on out.

As **petran** and **Randomguy1331** pointed out, one of the references in the last chapter was the "All according to Keikaku" statement by Menma, which is taken from a pretty horrible (or perhaps genius) fansub of Death Note. The other one was Menma's story of Boruto being a bio-genetic weapon planned out by Kushina, which is a reference to the whole "Hyuga conspiracy" theory. If you haven't read it, it's probably the single most hilarious NaruHina related theory out there. The final reference as pointed out by **Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf** and a **Guest** user was the line "It's time to kick ass and chew bubblegum..." from the game Duke Nukem and the movie They Live.

It was a lot of fun seeing some of you pick up on those little references. It was even more fun for me to see that **Randomguy1331, jenuzumaki, Erosdeath, Reading Pixie, mrenteria99, petran, SpicyWifey, naruhinakiralacus, Deadly-DeathStar** all enjoyed Menma's silly antics. He's a lot of fun for me to write as well, so shout out to all of my homies lol!

One interesting point brought up by **tra-la-la-la-laa** was the concept of Menma eventually having a love interest. I've actually had a pretty solid idea (perhaps a bit of an obvious one) in that regard that but nothing's yet set in stone. I'd love to know if any of you can think of something hilarious for him in the love department. Would you like him to be forever alone or perhaps you have someone known or original in mind?

 **Erosdeath:** BTW is that an Infinite Stratos avatar? Charlotte is best girl. That is all I have to say.

Anyway, that is all for now. Until next time, take care!


	39. The Enemy of My Enemy

**The Enemy of My Enemy**

* * *

Menma's declaration of wanting to join the fight against the Raikage left both Naruto and Hinata confused and in awe. They didn't know the identity of this person, but something about him felt familiar as though they had seen him before. Yet this unknown man was willing to join in their seemingly hopeless fight completely out of the blue. It just seemed so odd.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked to Menma's glee.

The blonde haired Uzumaki stomped on the floor with one foot and outstretched one of his hands towards the couple, making a flamboyant pose. "Well I'm glad you asked, for you are in the presence of a legend, a myth, a fable! My given name may be UZUMAKI MENMA…but in reality I am-"

Before he could finish his statement however, a powerful lightning bolt crashed on to his position. This forced Menma to cut his introduction haphazardly and jump away to save his hide. When he landed in safety, suffice to say he was not happy and scowled at the Kumogakure shinobi standing at a distance that fired the lightning bolt at him. "WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!? Don't you have the common decency to let a man finish his epic introduction? Didn't you people read the book on the "100 Common Etiquettes for Ninja Combat"? Rule number 53 clearly states that you're forbidden from attacking a ninja if he starts doing his introduction or goes into a transformation sequence. You have to sit there and watch it with bewildered looks on your faces. That way it increases the drama-WHOOOOAH!"

Another lightning bolt landed on Menma's feet and he once again had to jump away to avoid getting electrocuted, this time landing next to Naruto and Hinata.

"Enough of your gibberish! If you're going stand with those two, then you will perish along with them." The Raikage warned with the utmost seriousness.

Before Menma could say another word, the Raikage's brother had rushed up in his face and the clash of a sword to kunai now kept the two parties locked up in combat.

"Yo yo, it's about time we dropped the beat~

The only thing that's certain here is your defeat~" Bee sang, or rapped very uncharacteristically when compared to the general ambiance the shinobi of Kumogakure had around them.

"Wait what? You think you're a battle rapper or something? You're in with the wrong crowd here buddy." Menma remarked in surprise. He wasn't expecting to be fighting a guy wearing sunglasses and rapping during battle. Despite that he could tell that this man was no joke when it came to power. Underestimating him would be a grave mistake.

While Bee and Menma clashed, the Raikage signalled his right hand man, Darui to join in on the offence.

"Hinata-"

"Don't worry. I'll deal with him." Hinata cut in before Naruto could finish his sentence as she knew what he was thinking. "As much as I hate to leave you in this condition, you'll have to take on the Raikage for now. I'll try to join you as soon as I can. Please, just be careful."

Naruto smiled at the concern she showed for him but quickly returned his attention back to the ordeal standing in front of them. "Leave him to me. He may be the Raikage, but remember, I'm the Hokage now as well. I can take care of this."

Hinata nodded albeit reluctantly but left Naruto to face the Raikage by himself.

As soon as he was left to his own devices, Naruto did not waste a second. He ran towards the Raikage and threw his only functioning left hand at him with full force. Yet the Raikage did not move an inch from his position and took the fist straight to his chin, remaining completely unphased. It did nothing, not even move him an inch.

A cynical smirk crept up the Raikage's face as he looked down upon Naruto. "Come on, surely you can do better than that."

" _The nerve on this guy."_ Yuki's angered words rang out throughout Naruto's mind and the cloak around his body flared up in response. He continued his barrage of punches from every direction, yet it was like hitting a wall of bricks. The Raikage stood with his hands folded across his chest, unamused.

While Naruto continued in his futile attempts in hand to hand combat against the Raikage, Hinata clashed against Darrui with powerful ninjutsu. But she too was having trouble keeping up with the Raikage's right hand man.

Exhausted and worn out, Hinata looked towards Houka to find a way and end this conflict. "This isn't working. At this rate we're going to run out of power way before he does. We need to use something powerful to end this quickly?"

"I think I can manage something before I dissipate completely. I'm barely hanging on by a thread."

"Then we'll just have to make this one count. FIRE RELEASE: GREAT FIRE ANNIHILATION!"

Houka conjured up every last bit of her strength and exhaled a huge wall of flames that sought to engulf everything in sight, and Darui was currently standing right in its path.

"Finally, something worth breaking a sweat over." He instantly created a lightning clone of himself who fired a stream of water towards the incoming flames. During this time Darui started to charge up what looked like black lightning in both hands. "BLACK LIGHTNING RELEASE: THUNDERBOLT!"

He discharged the black lightning from both hands, which was a special and much stronger form of the lightning style passed on through the Raikage's lineage in Kumogakure. The attack was powered up even further by the water style technique from his clone, allowing for it to match Hinata's in power.

The two techniques collided, resulting in some spectacular fireworks, but none overcame the other and they were back to square one. However, the situation was only getting worse for Hinata, who could not go on much longer in this exchange.

While the battle raged on between Naruto, Hinata and Menma against the Raikage and his aides, at the outskirts of the village Kushina was standing on the rooftop of a building in the middle of what appeared to be a circle with a powerful seal placed on top. This seal allowed her to sense very clearly all the ninjas within the village, in particular the battle that was going on at the moment. Even though she wanted to help badly, she could only witness it through gritted teeth right now.

"I'm back! And look who I've brought with me." At that moment Minato landed next to his wife and placed their grandson on the ground as well.

The sight of Boruto brought a sense of great relief to Kushina's heart as she grasped him in a tight hug. "Boruto! Are you okay dear!? They didn't hurt you did they!?"

"N-No I'm fine." Boruto barely managed to squeal out in the midst of being smothered by his grandmother. He could see how worried she was.

Hearing his reply Kushina loosened her grip around him slightly. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I mean grandpa showed by right on time and beat up all the guards no sweat. Like BAM and WHAM and PLUCKED FROM THE SHADOWS! He was so cool and powerful, just as you said."

"Well, if you say so." Kushina gently patted her grandson on his head in response.

Minato on the other hand felt a little embarrassed at the praise he received, but soon his expression became serious once more. "Kushina, how's things on their end?"

His wife's expression also became grim once more. "It's not looking good right now. Naruto and Hinata are not in good shape. I can sense it – they are way too worn out to keep on fighting. We need to do something."

"What's going on with Tou-chan and Kaa-chan? Are they okay?" Boruto worriedly enquired.

"They're okay Boruto and are still fighting the enemy leader. Their actions helped us in rescuing you. But we need to find a way to escape this place now that we've managed get you out." At that moment Kushina sensed something foreboding. "Minato, there's an emergency."

"What happened?"

"There's quite a large group of reinforcements headed towards the battle from the north of the village. The situation could get even worse if that happens."

"Don't worry, I'll go intercept them. Just give me the directions and keep me updated. As soon as I've taken care of the reinforcements, I'll join in the fight against the Raikage." Thus Minato was gone like the wind in a moment's notice.

"Are my parents going to be okay?" Boruto asked once more, looking very concerned.

Kushina smiled wryly in order to relieve him of at least some of his worries. "It's going to be okay Boruto. Your parents are strong. They'll be fine. We'll make sure of it."

 **Back in the midst of battle…**

Naruto's onslaught against the Raikage continued, but it had absolutely no effect. He simply did not have anything left in the tank after all the fighting he had gone through to be able to mount any serious offense.

Ay effortlessly blocked all his attacks with one hand. It was to the point that he appeared bored. "So this is what the new Hokage is capable of? It would appear the title of Hokage has been rendered into a joke with each successor when the first Hokage was once feared among the nations as the strongest shinobi to have ever lived. Disappointing."

" _I've heard enough from this guy. First he throws his cronies at us and now he mocks us when fighting with barely any power left. I think we can manage one more powerful technique between the two of us. Let's make him eat his words."_ Yuki suggested to her host.

"INDEED!" Naruto raised his functioning left hand and outstretched his palm wide towards Ay, causing several hundred earth swords to tear out of the ground and float in the air, all pointing directly at the Raikage. "COMBINATION NINJA ART: STORM OF BLADES!"

This was a combined technique between Naruto and Yuki, one where Naruto could use his control over wind to precisely target each of her blades towards the enemy. This time though, every single one of those swords was aimed at a single target.

"Child's play. It's time you understood the difference in power between a toddler and an adult." Ay finally decided to stop standing around and make a move of his own as his body was suddenly covered in intense lightning, so much so that his hair was now standing straight. He sent out an overwhelming burst of electricity from his body that tore through all of the earth swords like knife through butter. Ay's eyes were now fixated on Naruto. "I gave you your chance, but now it's my turn!"

In the blink of an eye, Ay was in point blank range of his target and swung his bulky right arm to deliver a gigantic lariat that sent Naruto's body spinning like a stick in the air.

"LIGHTNING STRAIGHT!" The next moment Ay delivered a truly gut wrenching punch that sent Naruto crashing several feet deep into the ground.

The Uzumaki's head was ringing from the impact and be could barely even tell top from bottom right now. But he barely had a moment to rest as Ay grabbed him by the head and lifted him up into the air as though he were a ragdoll.

Naruto tried to escape Ay's grip, but it was almost like an iron claw that only got tighter by the moment. At this point he was writing around in pain as his head was about to be crushed like a watermelon under the immense force being applied on it.

In a last ditch effort of desperation and self-preservation, Naruto sent a shockwave radially outward along the ground, pushing the Raikage back along with it. This gave Naruto a moment's respite as he dropped to the ground and caught his breath.

Or at least that was the hope.

Naruto suddenly felt the Raikage wrap his arms tightly around his waist from behind and before he could even react Ay delivered a devastating suplex, driving Naruto neck first into the ground. Without even a moment's rest, Ay then lifted Naruto over his head and jumped high into the air.

"THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS HOKAGEEEE! LIGER BOMB!" Ay came down towards the earth at full speed and slammed Naruto's body into the ground with so much force that it shattered the land itself.

The technique was designed to be the Raikage's finishing act, but the cloak around his body protected Naruto from most of the impact before disappearing completely.

" _Forgive me…Naruto…kun. That is all…I could manage."_ With those final words Yuki's voice faded away.

It was the first time in a very long while since she addressed Naruto as "Naruto-kun", but her final actions were a testament to how strongly Hinata wished to protect Naruto.

" _What are you apologising for? You just saved me right there."_ Naruto replied within his mind.

"NARUTO-KUN!" Hinata saw the destruction caused by the Raikage's attack and her heart nearly jumped to her throat.

"You don't have the time to be looking away right now, unless you want the same fate as him to befall you." Darui gave a quick warning as he created what appeared to be a panther from his special black lightning. "LIGHTNING RELEASE: BLACK PANTHER!"

Houka knew that Hinata would not be able to do anything to counter this attack, and she herself was teetering at the edge of existence at this point. Thus in a last ditch effort to protect her summoner, she directly ran into the Black Panther, wiping it along with herself out completely.

As the memories Hinata's two clones flowed back into her, she was both relieved that Naruto was still okay and thankful that her counterparts had protected them both. In the end both Houka and Yuki despite their differences shared one of the most defining attributes of Hinata – her selflessness in wanting to protect the ones she loved regardless of her own wellbeing.

While Naruto and Hinata barely hung on, Menma on the other hand had been busy keeping up with Bee and his unorthodox fighting style. Despite his looks, this man was the embodiment of "Float like a butterfly, sting like a Bee". One small mistake against him would prove deadly.

Menma could sense that his brother and his wife were both at their wits end. He realised that the situation was looking really dire.

"Heh, despite your ridiculous looks and non-stop rapping you're actually a pretty powerful shinobi. That acrobatic fighting style of yours with the eight swords is no joke. I can barely figure out a pattern. You're good, I'll give you that…"

"I appreciate the compliment~

Just for you I'll make my final attack spectacularly brilliant~"

"BUT-" Menma cut in. "I made a promise that I'd keep those two safe. Therefore, we'll have to cut this encounter short. Time for me to LIFT ALL LIMITERS! Alright nature, now hook me up with all your good stuff!"

Upon Menma's invocation, his body started to rapidly absorb nature's energy from its surroundings, a passive ability only a few in the history of the Uzumaki clan were able to learn. Unlike Naruto however who had learned to use his clan's ability mostly on his own through trial and error, Menma learned of his clan's secrets from his fellow clanmates and the secret scrolls detailing the ability their ancestors had brought with them when running away from Uzushiogakure before its destruction. Thus Menma was able to power up at a very fast pace, and with this surge in power came a very stark change in his personality. The young Uzumaki no longer seemed to be joking around, his usual temperament now replaced by a cold and calculating demeanour.

Just as Bee was about to charge in once more with his eight swords, Menma simply raised his right palm towards him and hit him with a powerful repulsive energy blast that sent him flying.

"Become bound by the Uzumaki's shackles." Those words caused several white chains to burst out from the ground below and wrap themselves around Bee's limbs, confining him to his position at least for a little bit.

This allowed Menma the opportunity to teleport next to Hinata where he created several hundred clones around Darui in order to keep him occupied.

"My clones will keep him busy for a while. You should hurry to the Hokage's position. The child has been extracted by my allies, so we do not have much time to waste here any longer." Menma suggested to Hinata before disappearing once more.

Hinata was shocked to hear that statement but once she focused her Byakugan she could see that Boruto was indeed no longer in his previous position and was now near the outskirts of the village. She didn't know exactly what was going on but understood nonetheless the importance behind their unknown benefactor's words. For now it would make sense to heed those words and regroup with Naruto and as such she rushed towards him as quickly as she could.

Naruto on the other hand scrambled on to his feet after the devastating blow he received from the Raikage. Even though he was up, his vision was blurry and he could barely stand on his two feet.

"I'm impressed that you can even stand after taking a Liger Bomb. No one does. However, you won't be standing up after this next one." Ay's words were abruptly cut short by Menma teleporting right behind him and throwing a punch, but he was able to turn around in time to block it.

"He's no longer your opponent from here on out. That would be me." A man of few words right now, Menma leaped into action once more, blinking all around Ay at a blistering place and pummelling him from every which direction, leaving only a flash of yellow in the wake of each of his teleportation. Even Ay, who was known to be one of the fastest shinobi in existence could not keep up with Menma's speed. This was one of Minato's signature techniques, known as the Yellow Flash Zeroth Form: Space-Time Hurricane Sequential Steps, and Menma always ended it with a, "RASENGAN!"

Menma shoved the Rasengan right into Ay's midsection, generally the perfect attack to finish his target after weakening them up with the relentless beatdown. Yet Ay still stood his ground and to Menma's surprise grabbed the hand that was carrying the Rasengan.

"A ninja faster than even me!? THAT'S PREPOSTEROUS!" The Raikage in his anger hurled the young Uzumaki into the distance and jumped up into the air. "LIGHTNING STRAIGHT!"

He came down with full force and punched the ground where his target was just a split second ago, causing the earth to shatter into pieces from the immense power. Ay's entire right hand was now buried in the rubble.

Menma had just managed to teleport away at the last second before the attack had hit him and was now high up in the sky looking down at the destruction that the Raikage had caused below. Frustration was starting to build up within him as he sought to put an end to his fight once and for all. That thought, the thought of bringing about the end brought an unusual sideways smirk on Menma's face.

" _I could end this right now..."_ Menma contemplated as he raised his right hand in front of his face and opened his palm. A chaotic ball of darkness with several rings surrounding it started to form atop his palm. A menacing, screeching noise emanated from it that was so loud that it could be heard far and wide across the village. _"Great Rasenring…"_

The Raikage looked up, for the first time with apprehension in his eyes. He could just sense the danger exuding from that thing, whatever it was.

"NO MENMA, YOU MUSTN'T! THAT'S GOING TOO FAR!" Kushina's warning blasted out from Menma's earpiece.

"Your mother is right! That technique is too dangerous. It'd destroy a large chunk of the village and catch civilians in the blast, not to mention Naruto and Hinata as well. In their current state, even they would fall victim to it. You must relent this instant son." Minato added urgently, but in a bit more of a level-headed manner.

His parents' words of advice brought some sense into Menma and he quickly defused his technique. "I-I wasn't going to actually use it. I just wanted to scare them for a bit. But how do we get out of this mess right now?"

"I'll do it. I'll create a way." Kushina replied.

"Eh?" Both Menma and Minato were surprised to hear her claim.

"Menma, get ready to escort Naruto and Hinata out of the village. I've had enough of these Kumogakure shinobi bringing harm to my family. For that I'll teach them a harsh lesson. UZUMAKI CLAN'S SEALING TECHNIQUE: GREAT BINDING CHAINS!"

Countless thick white chains tore out from the ground and latched on to every Kumogakure shinobi in sight near Naruto, Hinata, Minato and Menma. More and more chains kept rising from below and brought the enemy forces into the ground. Kushina exerted herself to the utmost until every enemy ninja that could harm her family was unable to fight any longer after having their limbs weighed down by these special chains. Kushina pushed herself to the absolute limit in order to keep the chains in place around such a large group of people and to create an opportunity for her family to escape.

But the enemy was't about to relent so easily. With every passing second the binding power of the chains became ever so slightly weaker as the opposing shinobi struggled against their restraints, making it extremely difficult for Kushina to hold on.

"GO NOW!" She shouted to Menma, but before he could move, in a feat of inhumane strength the Raikage started to tear all the chains that were holding him hostage out of the ground one after another and looked towards Menma to intercept him. There was no way the Uzumaki could escape right now.

But then it happened. All it took was that one critical opportunity when the Raikage was focused on freeing himself from the chains. During that moment, a sword pierced right through Ay's heart from behind.

He spat out a mouthful of blood, but the shock was far greater than the pain right now. Two swift kicks to the back of his legs from the assailant and Ay dropped on to his knees, his hands falling to his sides and his vision fading. The mystery assailant twisted the sword by 90 degrees with a sickening churn, doing even more collateral damage to the vital organ as blood pooled up on the ground.

In those last moments, Ay used all his remaining strength to turn his head around in order to see who it was that had blindsided him and brought about his end. It was then that his eyes met those of the Masked Man's – the Mangekyou Sharingan for the very first time.

"YOU!" That was the only word Ay could utter at this point in shock of seeing his conspirator from within Konoha.

"Raikage's assassination complete. This village is on its knees. Rest assured that soon Kumogakure will be born anew under the watchful eyes of Konoha." Fugaku whispered in Ay's ears during his final moments.

* * *

And so the battles finally come to an end.

What is Fugaku's true plan? I'd love to know your thoughts as always. Until next time!


	40. Sacrifice

**Sacrifice**

* * *

In his last moments the Raikage found himself in a different world – a world composed entirely of red and black. Below him was a sea of red and above him was a black sky as far as the eyes could see. His body was hanging lifelessly by thin black strings coming down from the sky as though he were a puppet, which was the position he found himself in in real life. As he opened his heavy eyes fully, he saw the masked man who had driven a sword through his heart just moments ago standing in front of him.

"I thought I'd relish in this moment for just a while by bringing you here during your last moments. This entire charade has been going for far too long after all. But regardless, welcome to my world, even though you won't be here for long." The masked man greeted his prey with glee.

"W-Who are you?" Ay demanded to know with the last bit of life that was left in his voice.

"I suppose I could give you that answer. It is after all your final request." Fugaku removed the black mask with red stripes that he usually wore and lifted the transformation he normally applied on himself to hide the true nature of his eyes, thus revealing his identity to the man he had been aiding for so long.

Ay's eyes widened in disbelief and the only word he could utter was "Uchiha!"

"That look on your face is quite telling. You really thought that I was going to assist you in destroying Konoha from the inside? Yet you didn't realise that in reality I was simply using you in order to take over Kumogakure from the inside instead. The very enemy that you were so afraid of and trying to erase – the Uchiha, was right here in front of you the whole time." Fugaku's laughter echoed throughout the genjutsu world of his Makgekyou Sharingan. "You were so desperate to get your hands on the Byakugan from the Hyuga clan leader's lineage, because you thought somehow it would allow you to counter the Sharingan that you feared so much. A foolish presumption, but it presented the perfect opportunity for me nonetheless as this lust for power would ultimately lead to your downfall. So I tracked down and practically handed you the child of the Hokage, knowing full well that as soon as you brought the child to this village, Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuga Hinata would come running in blindly as well and launch a full frontal assault on this pathetic village of yours. From there on it would just be a case of letting the two parties destroy each other until that perfect moment arrived when I could finish off both sides. And here we are. It worked almost a bit too well."

Ay's eyelids were heavy and even though he wanted to desperately make a move, his body hung in place by what felt like unbreakable strings. The more he struggled, the tighter they wound around him. Now that his life flashed before his eyes, he realised that all the times Fugaku had assisted him under the guise of the Masked Man, from the battle between Kumo and Konoha where they managed to kill Minato Namikaze, the prospective new Hokage until now in overthrowing the current Hokage, were nothing but a set up for the eventual betrayal. Wanting to destroy Konoha from the inside was just a ruse. Ay thought he could use Fugaku to further the means to that end, but in reality it was quite the opposite. The anger he felt from letting himself be deceived in this manner was unfathomable. He should have known.

Fugaku now gazed directly into Ay's eyes as though to peer directly into his soul. "It has been far too long, but the time has come for the Uchiha to fulfil their role and cleanse this ninja world. Our ancestor, Madara created Konoha with the sole purpose of uniting the shinobi of this world together. It was meant to be the one singular ninja village that presided over every other, under one ruler, the only "Kage" – the strongest shinobi that would keep everyone else in check. Only by bringing together the shinobi of this world under one umbrella would we finally be able to stop this endless bloodshed amongst our kind. The pointless divisions of nations and villages amongst us would disappear and we would no longer simply be instruments of war, finally being able see a glimpse of peace. That was the dream Madara had and to achieve that end he was willing to make any sacrifice necessary and even fight the war to end all wars. He ended the plague of the Uzumaki, ones who were an affront to that peace, and brought together the greatest clans across the nations by all means necessary to form Konohagakure, the strongest shinobi village in existence. Thus the first step was complete. Now it would be a matter of bringing together the other villages. Kumogakure was first."

The Raikage gritted his teeth in anger as he knew where this little "story" was going.

"He came to your people in peace to join him in creating a better world. He was even willing to negotiate. Yet your people saw Madara and Konoha as a grave threat. Your ancestors were still stuck to their barbaric ways, thinking only of self-preservation. They wanted Konoha erased, so they pretended to accept the Hokage's proposal, only to backstab him and attempt to end Konoha at the most opportune moment. Yet Madara saw through it all and the first Raikage's plans ended in resounding failure. That is why the Raikage's lineage hates Konoha and the Uchiha, is it not, despite the fact that Madara showed you mercy and did not destroy your village completely given your actions." Fugaku recalled the origin of the conflicts between the two villages that has continued ever since.

"Sadly, Madara's rule was cut short as he disappeared from Konoha one day without any explanation, a mystery that isn't even known by the Uchiha. Yet his dream lived on within his clan, within the Uchiha. We will achieve the end that he sought at all cost. The pathetic individuals that succeeded him and called themselves Hokage have turned Konoha into just another run-of-the-mill ninja village, forgetting its true purpose. They seek these fragile alliances with other villages and are satisfied with letting the pointless conflicts between shinobi continue unchecked. All of them lacked the ambition of Madara. They lacked the willingness to initiate a conquest for a greater peace. But that will finally change. The Uchiha will once again rise to take its position as the true leaders of Konoha and bring all other villages under a singular leader. It all begins here with Kumogakure and the fall of their leader, the Raikage himself!"

At that moment Ay's body ignited in black flames and withered away completely. The genjutsu broke and Ay dropped dead in the real world.

"But there is one more man that stands in the path towards peace right now. And that man is none other than the Hokage himself. Uzumaki Naruto, you're going down with me in this final blaze of glory!" Fugaku focused his Mangekyou Sharingan solely on Naruto, erasing everything else out from his vision. He did it with so much vigour that blood poured out down both of his eyes like a fountain and intense pain surged through them to every inch of his body. But Fugaku didn't care. This was the culmination of his lifelong effort and as such he let loose his final attack.

Naruto was caught in the open with nowhere to run and completely exhausted from all the battles. He didn't know the fact that his life was in serious danger at that moment.

"WATCH OUT, NARUTO-KUN!" Hinata jumped in front of Naruto, knowing what the Mangekyou Sharingan was capable of due to her previous engagement with Tobi, taking the full brunt of the attack in his stead.

Her back that was turned towards Fugaku became the focus of his attack and black flames ignited across it.

"GUUUHHH!" Fugaku dropped to his knees and clutched his eyes due to the unimaginable pain he suffered right now. It was so bad that he threw up an entire mouthful of blood. The sickness that plagued him for so long, one that came about due to the use of the Mangekyou Sharingan could no longer be contained. His eyesight was completely gone and his time was rapidly ticking to an end. Thus he reluctantly used the unique ability of his eyes one last time to teleport out of that place despite having missed his target. He needed to get out of the village before the others could act. But above all there was one very important final task he had to complete.

Naruto witnessed in horror a scene from the worst nightmare that he could ever imagine as black flames rose up from Hinata's back and burned intensely. As soon as he realised what had just happened, he rushed towards her in order to save her.

"STAY AWAY!" Hinata thrusted one of her palms towards Naruto with the last little bits of her power and sent a burst of wind towards him, one that sent him flying backwards into the ground. "Don't come near me!"

Naruto of course did not listen and got up in order to run to her aid once more.

Hinata looked around with her Byakugan only to find Menma further in the distance and shouted at him at the top of her lungs, "STOP HIM!"

Menma was in shock of what was going on but he could hear the desperation in Hinata's request. Thus he quickly activated his chains that came up through the ground and wrapped tightly around Naruto's legs, making him fall face first on to the ground a distance away from Hinata.

Naruto's concern turned into pure seething anger as he gave Menma a murderous glare. "LET GO OFF ME RIGHT NOW!"

The sheer killing intent made Menma back off several feet in fear even though technically Naruto didn't have any power left right now to make good on his words.

"I-It's not his fault. This is what I want." Hinata responded in a calm voice. She also fell face first on to the ground due to the intense pain from the flames burning the skin on her back.

"HINATA NOOOOO! I need to do something! We need to put out those flames!" Naruto scratched and clawed with his hands in order to pull his body towards Hinata even if it was one inch at a time. No matter how strongly the chains bound him down, he refused to give up.

"That's enough Naruto-kun. These black flames cannot be extinguished. Once they light something on fire, they do not stop until it is completely burned away. I didn't have much strength left, so all I could do was to get in the way in order to stop it…in order to protect you."

"T-This can't be true. This can't be happening right now. No…." Naruto's eyes watered from the fear and despair that he felt of losing the person that he loved most. "Why Hinata? Why would you do this for me?"

"Would you not have done the same for me too? Besides, you're the Hokage now. There are a lot of people depending on you. You finally have the ability to change the ways of the ninja for the better. That is why you must continue living Naruto-kun. It was your dream after all."

"None of that matters! None of that matters without you! I don't want a life where you're not there by my side! That is why I kept chasing after you for all these years, and I can't let it end like this now!" Naruto dragged his body forcibly towards Hinata even though the chains binding him tore into his flesh. Yet that pain was nothing compared to the dread of losing the love of his life.

"If not for everyone else, you must continue forward for our one and only child, Boruto. From this moment forth it is your responsibility to give him the best upbringing possible as his father."

"NO! Boruto needs his mother more than anyone else in this world. There is no way he would ever accept this. He loves you the most after all. I can't fulfil your role in his life."

"YOU CAN AND YOU WILL! You've already taken a special place in his life whether you realise it or not." Hinata insisted wholeheartedly. "But just…be a bit considerate of his health. Don't just feed him ramen all day. He's still growing, so he needs his vegetables too. Also, don't let him stay up too late either. Make sure to give him showers every day. That boy will avoid it like the plague if you don't apply force. But above all…please be patient with him. He may be a bit brash…but deep down he's a really kind and good boy…just like his father." As Hinata said those words, she could no longer hold back the stream of tears at the thought of not being able to be there to see her beloved son grow up in front of her eyes. It was a truly heart-breaking moment, more devastating perhaps than even the physical pain. Hinata's face distorted in pure agony as the flames now burned through her skin completely and almost to the flesh on her back. She clenched her fists so tight that she dug her nails into the palms of her hands in order to hold in the urge to scream at the top of her lungs.

Naruto couldn't bear to watch the suffering Hinata was going through any longer. It felt like his heart itself was bleeding. With every fibre of his being he lunged forward with willpower alone, breaking the chains that held him captive and closed the distance between the two.

But just as he was inches away from reaching Hinata, his face was shoved down into the ground and his body pinned in position by Menma from above.

"Forgive me Nii-san, but I can't allow her sacrifice to be in vain. This is what you want, isn't it, Hinata-san?" Menma asked Hinata in the most apologetic of tones. His hands were shaking and he hated himself for being so powerless right now. _"If only…if only there was a way to save her."_

"Indeed. Thank you, Menma-kun." Hinata nodded back at him with a smile despite the horrific situation she was in.

This was too much for even Menma and he had to avert his eyes from hers. He couldn't bring himself to watch this any longer, but he had to respect her final wish. It was the least he could do.

"No…Hinata…no…please…no…no…NOOOOOO!" Naruto could no longer even form a tangible sentence from his voice breaking up from crying worse than a little baby that was just born into the world. He reached out his working left hand towards Hinata in a final act of desperation.

She reciprocated by extending her own hand towards him. The two were close enough such that the tips of their index fingers touched one another. Thus they came into contact for one final time, sharing in each other's warmth, even if through their fingertips alone.

"I'm glad we got to meet again Naruto-kun. Even though I ran away…even though I pushed back so hard…you never gave up on me. For that I'm truly grateful. You were my dearest friend…an amazing teammate…a loving husband…and the best father I could ask for my child. That is why I have no hesitation in dying here for you. In the end because of you I was able to overcome the internal conflict that I suffered from for all these years and find my true self once more. In that I've finally been set free. Therefore as farewell I want you to know my true feelings towards you one final time." Even though Hinata's consciousness was teetering at the edge of permanently fading away and it became very difficult for her to speak, she felt oddly uplifted. Despite her critical condition, Hinata experienced little fear of the end that was nigh. For one last time she gave Naruto the warmest and most heartfelt of smiles that defined who she truly was, and with that uttered her final words: "Naruto-kun…I love you."

Thus Hinata chose to make the ultimate sacrifice for the one that she loved.


	41. A Look Towards the Future

**A Look towards the Future**

* * *

 **10 years after the events in Kumogakure…**

Naruto Uzumaki was currently sitting in the open balcony of his mansion near the village where Hinata and Boruto once lived. Although quite some time had passed since then, he still came here every so often to relax whenever he could find time in between his Hokage duties. There were memories tied to this place that simply kept bringing him back. As he looked out down the hill and towards the direction of the house where his wife and child once resided, he was once again taken back down memory lane.

A lot changed during the time that had passed in the last ten years. Naruto was now a very experienced and widely respected Hokage amongst his subordinates and villagers. For the most part, Konoha had become a rather peaceful abode with no major incidents taking place since. His son turned 18 not too long ago, finally becoming a fully-fledged adult. That was a pretty monumental occasion for any parent, and Naruto was no different.

But perhaps the greatest change that had taken place since then was the 9 year old girl currently sitting on his lap overlooking the hill with him. Himawari held a plush panda in her hands and wore a bright yellow one piece similar to the colour of a sunflower, which contrasted her short dark blue hair, something that she inherited from her mother. Her cyan blue eyes however were identical to Naruto's, even though the left was covered by an eye patch. She was currently enjoying story time with her father as he told him of the events that transpired long ago surrounding this village and her family.

Given that Naruto had arrived at a grim point in the story where he recalled Hinata's sacrifice in Kumogakure, he was taking a moment to gather himself since just thinking about those memories still choked him up to this day. Even Himawari who was normally always very inquisitive was currently not saying a word. This seemed very odd to Naruto and he looked down at her, only to find her eyes puffed up and watery.

"BWAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The next moment Himawari started bawling her eyes out which caught her father by surprise.

"Whoa, Hima, calm down. Calm down. Daddy's sorry if he said anything to upset you." Naruto tried his best to comfort her, but to no avail.

"But mommy *hic* but mommy *hic* UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Himawari's crying got even louder and it looked like there was no stopping her at this point.

As the situation seemed to be spiralling out of control, the door to the balcony suddenly swung open and Hinata rushed out with baking gloves in hand. She was making a cake at the moment.

"W-What's going on?" She exclaimed out of surprise seeing her daughter crying. "Is everything okay?"

As soon as Naruto saw his wife's face, he himself was reminded of the moment where he nearly lost her and his eyes started to water as well. The next moment both father and daughter rushed towards her – Himawari hugging her mother's legs and Naruto hugging her upper body with all their strength, tears streaming down both of their faces.

Hinata stood there bewildered. She didn't know what was happening, neither could she move. "A-Ano...what's going on? Why are you two crying?"

"Mommy, you're okay. You're okay right?" Himawari asked for reassurance. She was genuinely scared of even hearing of the possibility of not having her mother around.

"Hinata, I was just telling her about the whole incident that happened in Kumogakure when you…when you…DON'T DO ANYTHING WRECKLESS LIKE THAT EVER AGAIN!" Naruto asserted with all his heart. He was still traumatised to this day of seeing Hinata readily sacrifice herself for his sake.

Hinata finally understood what was going on and decided to appreciate the warm embrace of her family members, who she cherished with her very life. "C'mon you two, I'm doing just fine. So stop crying okay? This is a bit silly."

As the three shared an affectionate moment together, a fourth person arrived on the scene and was currently standing on the railing of the balcony.

"What is going on here?" Boruto asked his family, not knowing how to explain the situation.

Not only was Boruto an adult now, he also looked the part of an experienced shinobi. His attire was largely the same as before – a combination of a black jacket and pants with maroon stripes, the most important new addition was the presence of a maroon scarf that his mother had lovingly handmade for him to complement his overall getup. On both sides of Boruto were an ethereal Leopard and Tiger, Houka and Yuki respectively, both of whom also watched on with bewilderment in their eyes.

Seeing her brother's arrival on the scene, Himawari turned towards him with excitement in her eyes, but quickly assumed a more sombre posture with her hands folded across her chest.

"You've done well to return, my dear kindred. I've been patiently awaiting your arrival, for this corrupted eye of mine threatens to spiral out of control. You have brought the cure, have you not?" Himawari seemed to be demanding something from her brother while pointing to her left eye that was covered by a white eye patch.

Boruto on the other hand seemed unimpressed as he walked up to his little sister and started pulling on her eye patch. "There's nothing wrong with your eyes. Take that stupid thing off."

"Ahhhh noooo, don't pull on the great seal! It keeps in check a dark power locked within my corrupt eye that if unleashed will bring about a great disaster upon this land! To think despite possessing that knowledge, you still wish to unleash such calamity upon this world. Truly do you live up to the title of the "Prince of the Abyss", the successor to the great "King and Queen of the Abyss". Verily your lust for carnage is uncontrolled, as one would expect from the great prince."

"Don't call me that!" Boruto demanded of his sister as he let go off her eye patch and now gave his parents a stern look. "Mother, father, can't you two do something about her chuunibyou and these other delusions? It's kind of getting out of hand."

"Eh? Do we really need to? Come on son, don't you think it's kind of endearing when she does her little role play every time? The way that she speaks so seriously about it all, there's no way I could say no to my precious little girl." Naruto did his best to come to his daughter's defence. This was par the course for him as he loved to spoil her senseless. It was in part due to not being able to be there for Boruto when he was a child, so Naruto showered his younger child with affection, never being able to say no to her.

"You're going to ruin her at this rate." Boruto made a grim prediction.

"I think she'll turn out fine. She's my precious daughter after all." Naruto countered back, sparks now flying between the two.

"Alright you two, let's not get this started again." Hinata quickly intervened before things got really out of hand. She then turned towards her son and looked him up and down carefully, making sure nothing seemed out of place. "So I take it the mission went without a hitch? I was a little worried and felt bad for not coming along."

Boruto waved away his mother's concerns casually. "Don't fret it. You were planning on coming out here for a family outing for a while now, and the mission popped up out of nowhere. So I was the one who insisted you stay back with dad and Hima while I take care of the mission. Besides, Houka and Yuki were with me. It was all a cinch."

"Is that so?" Hinata asked.

"Of course. He is our son after all." Houka replied.

"Indeed, his abilities have become unparalleled. He lives up to, no, he surpasses the expectations placed upon one who is a descendant of the lineage of the Uzumaki and Hyuga clan leaders." Yuki reaffirmed.

As the two dispelled and their memories returned back to Hinata, she could see that her counterparts were telling the truth. Boruto handled the mission with ease and the grace of a shinobi who wields the power of the two strongest clans in existence. It made her proud.

There was another reason for her to be proud as well. It was because Hinata was also Boruto's instructor and together they were a shinobi team of master and student, which came about due to some special circumstances. Boruto was formally trained by his mother and the Hyuga as a ninja, with his father helping out at any chance he got given that he was at least informally the first master his son ever had. Overall this gave Boruto tutelage in very contrasting styles from two of the strongest individuals in Konoha, which when combined with his natural talent lent to him becoming one of the greatest assets for the village.

"Now that the matter surrounding your wellbeing is settled, my dear kin, present me with a suitable offering that shall satiate the fearsome power of my corrupt eye, lest a great catastrophe befall you." Himawari said to her brother in her best attempt at a dark tone, yet she looked at him with a hopeful and adorable gaze.

"Hai, hai!" Boruto fished around in his messenger bag and from within it pulled out a black, life-sized cat plush toy that he picked up for her on the way back. "Here, I found this little guy for you. You like it?"

Himawari's eyes lit up at the sight of the plush. She threw away the panda she was carrying around and now hugged the cat while spinning around in joy. She was ecstatic.

"Ku Ku Ku! My dear kin, you never disappoint in the offerings that you present! Yet another minion has now joined my great army of the abyss. I shall name him Chomusuke and make him a general of my legion."

"You mean you just added yet another toy to your gigantic collection. And stop giving them weird names." Boruto corrected his sister, but the sight of her being this happy was something he could never have enough of. Because of this Boruto also was a driving factor towards spoiling his sister, right behind his father. Every time Boruto returned back from a mission, he would never fail to bring her a present. But it was definitely worth it just to see her beautiful smile.

"Actually, I've got something else as well for you this time Hima that I think you may like." Boruto pulled out a brand new red eye patch from his pocket and presented it to his sister.

Himawari's face was that of shock as she received the eye patch from her brother. She couldn't believe what she was holding. "T-This can't be…no way! You realised that the seal on my corrupt eye was weakening and decided to bring forth a replacement seal. As would be expected from the great prince of the abyss! Truly your intuition is worth endless praise!"

Himawari, giddy with excitement, took off her current eye patch and put on the new one. It was as though the item was empowering her somehow. She was so happy in fact that she dropped her little act for a second and gave her brother a big hug. "Arigatou, An-chan."

When she wasn't busy with her usual fantasy role play, Himawari affectionately referred to her brother as "An-chan", her short hand for Aniki.

" _My little sister can't be this cute…"_ Boruto thought, feeling overwhelmed by his sister's adorable display of honest gratitude. "As long as you're happy Hima, that's all that matters to me."

"AH! I need to go check on the cake before it gets burned!" Hinata ran off downstairs like the wind in order to tend to her cake.

"I'll come with you too mommy." Himawari also ran off after her with her new toy in hand, leaving father and son to themselves.

"I've already emailed you the mission report. There isn't anything particularly interesting in it though." Boruto informed his father.

"I see. Good work. That is yet another A ranked mission done and dusted. You make this seem almost a bit too easy. At this rate you'll end up breaking the record of the most missions completed by any particular shinobi in the village, set previously by yours truly. But that's beside the point. You've become quite the spectacular shinobi Boruto. I feel particularly nostalgic saying that given it was right there where I first started to train you in the basics of becoming a shinobi 10 years prior. Time sure does fly." Naruto said while pointing down at the backyard of the mansion where he would train a young Boruto every weekend when he would visit this place.

Boruto looked down as well and was filled with a wealth of memories. "You're right about that. At the time I'd sneak out to meet you every week, despite not even knowing that you were my father. It was just fun for me hanging out with you back then and training. I guess not much has changed in that regard either – you've still been training me since whenever time allowed despite your Hokage duties. I gotta give it to you old man, if I'm considered strong; a lot of it is in part due to your tutelage."

"Well, you're my son after all and an integral part of the family that I always desired since childhood. There's no way I wouldn't do my absolute best in aiding your growth as a shinobi, Hokage or otherwise. Speaking of which, I think your accolades have started to become noticed by the higher ups as well. You've been the subject of talk of the village council as of late."

"The village council?" Boruto asked, having a feeling of where this may be going.

"I'm sure you already know this Boruto, but as the Hokage I have a lot of different responsibilities ranging from setting assignments for the shinobi under my command all the way to ensuring the wellbeing of the village. One of those responsibilities also involves finding a worthy successor to my throne, if you will. That decision is of such immense importance that the village council is directly involved in the advisory process. So I'll cut right to the chase. It's no secret to anyone that you are one of the best shinobi we have right now, and you seem to be very well liked by your peers – two qualities that are of unparalleled importance for the Hokage. Add on top your intelligence and lineage from two of the greatest clans – you have exactly what the village council is looking for in my potential successor. Of course this is a long process and wouldn't happen overnight. It definitely requires a lot of training. But the council has been hounding me to ask you whether you would consider becoming a candidate for the position of Hokage one day when I decide to hang it up. The consensus is that the village will very likely accept you into that position in the future." Naruto explained the situation to his son. "Personally speaking, I think that given your current status, you can take up any role you want, whether that be a Jounin instructor or even a leader within the ranks of the ANBU Black Ops unit. But above all, I would gladly start training you in the roles of the Hokage as my successor, if you so desire. You already know the responsibilities being the Hokage entails. Therefore it is up to you to make that choice. Ultimately though I want you to do whatever it is that makes you happy. I will be proud of you regardless."

Boruto smiled at his father's proposition and shook his head left to right. "I've seen you rot in that office for ten years old man. The job of a Hokage is not for me. I prefer having a much more active role, so I'm better off supporting the Hokage as best I can. I think that'll be my chosen path."

Naruto laughed at his son's response. "I see. I thought you'd say that. Well it is your choice, and I'm proud of you regardless. Not to mention, your old man isn't about to give up his position any time soon. So you'll be helping me out for a long time to come until I can find someone suitable to replace me in my ripe old age."

"I look forward to working for you far into the future then."

Both father and son shared a moment of appreciation for one another even though Boruto did not intend to walk down the same path as his father.

"That being said Boruto, there is something serious I want to discuss with you." Naruto stated in a rather grim tone, one that indicated that he was not joking around anymore and thus demanded his son's full attention. "You've heard about the incidents surrounding some Konoha ninjas being attacked on missions have you not?"

"Yeah, a string of assault cases where the perpetrator has yet to be identified?"

"Indeed, I've had some investigation done on the situation. The matter may be far worse than I imagined. Statements and analysis of some the victims seem to suggest that the attacker may be an Uchiha."

Boruto now looked at his father with widened eyes. "Are you serious!? Any idea of who it is exactly?"

"No, but we do know that the perpetrator is a female and a very powerful one at that to be able to take out entire squads from the shadows. A preliminary guess is that it is Sarada Uchiha, but we have no proof."

"WHAT!? Why is she attacking Konoha shinobi?"

"We have no idea but given the potential severity of the whole thing, I want you to investigate the situation before it escalates much further. I'll give you some strong backup. I need your eyes out there to check the scenes of the attack to see if you can find any clues."

"I'll get on it ASAP. This could be quite serious if the Uchiha are the ones behind these attacks given what happened 10 years ago."

Naruto nodded. "Indeed, you're right. It has been 10 years since the "Uchiha's Collapse". But I have no doubt in my mind that they intend to one day take back control of that which they believe is rightfully theirs – Konoha. These attacks may very well be the first steps towards that ultimate goal. If that is the case, then the village's security is at serious risk and we must act fast. That is why I need your help with this Boruto."

"Of course, my hands are on deck. I'll do whatever it takes to ensure the safety of Konoha."

"Thank you Boruto. I'm glad to hear that." Naruto placed his hand upon his son's shoulder and voiced his appreciation. "Anyway, we'll talk in detail about this at a later date once I have a proper course of action planned. For now get changed and let's go enjoy your mother's cake."

Boruto nodded and thus both father and son headed downstairs to join their other family members for a nice family meal.

As Boruto got changed and headed into the dining area, Himawari ran up from behind and climbed up her brother's back, now hanging off of his shoulders, something that she did often playfully. "An-chan, you promised to help me in my training again once you got back from this mission remember? Are you ready to keep your word?"

"Of course. There's no way I'd lie to my little sister. How about we head out to the backyard and start on your training once we've had some food?"

"Hmmm…maybe a little later. I want to hear the rest of the story of how mommy and daddy got back together when you were just a kid."

"Oh, so father's finally told you that story huh? What part did he get up to?"

"The bit about when you were captured by Kumogakure and mom sacrificed herself…" Himawari sounded audibly distraught bringing up the topic of her mother, but her curiosity was piqued. She needed to know the rest.

"Come on Hima, you don't need to sound so sad. Mom turned out fine in the end. But that was the time when I truly understood just how much our parents loved one another. Just look at them right now. They're like two little lovebirds." Boruto pointed towards his parents at the other side of the room happily smiling at one another while making small talk and setting up the table for the meal together. Even though Naruto and Hinata were married for nearly 20 years now, they still looked just as intimate as a newlywed couple, their bond growing ever stronger as time passed. They were always so happy whenever they were next to one another.

"You know what? Let's leave mother and father to their own devices. They came all the way here to relax and spend some time together. How about you and I head out later on so that I can show you around the village and tell you the rest of the story? I mean if you've already heard about the Kumogakure incident then there's not much left of it. What do you say?" Boruto made an intriguing his proposition.

"Sure!" Himawari agreed without a second thought. She loved spending time with her beloved sibling as much as she could.

After all, Boruto and Himawari shared a very closely knit relationship of brother and sister – one that would be of great significance in the future.

* * *

You weren't expecting this chapter, were you? I wanted to try something different and unexpected with this chapter (even though it may appear somewhat disruptive) as it sets up essentially the end of the story of Naruto and Hinata's reunion, which will happen here in the future. There aren't very many chapters left at this point, most of which will focus on Naruto meeting his parents and the "Uchiha's collapse".

The range of reactions to the last chapter was great and I loved every single on of them. Given that, I do think the ending to this whole story arc should prove to be interesting.

On a side note, yes, Himawari has a serious case of Chuunibyou. In fact it actually does have some storyline significance, but mostly for comedic purposes as you'll see later on. There were multiple references to several other comedy anime through her. I'd love to know if anyone caught them as some of those are my personal favourites.

That will be all for today. Next time we will pick up from where we left off at the end of last chapter. I hope I managed to surprise you, at least a little. Until then, take care.


	42. Loss and Gain

**Loss and Gain**

Continuing from the end of chapter 40 (Sacrifice):

* * *

 **Right after the Raikage's assassination in Kumogakure…**

Fugaku dropped on the ground deep within the hidden leaf forest. He clutched his profusely bleeding eyes, not being able to see anything anymore and his body writhing in unbearable pain. The heavy price that came with the overuse of the Mangekyou Sharingan was a slow and excruciating torment, one that very few would be able to withstand. But Fugaku had withstood it for years, and he wasn't about to give in to that suffering in his last moments.

"Sasuke!" He called out to his son even though he wasn't able to see, coughing up copious amounts of blood with every passing second.

Sasuke was already present at the location awaiting his father's arrival as had been agreed before by the two. Even though Sasuke knew of Fugaku's condition very well, to see him in this miserable state was tough, especially because he knew what was going to come next.

"I'm here, father." He replied.

"Good. My time has drawn to an end. Unfortunately, I could not finish off Uzumaki Naruto as planned. However, he is injured and as such you'll have some time to improvise a way to deal with him. Take my blade Sasuke and do what needs to be done." Fugaku ordered his son as he lay face down on the ground, his consciousness barely hanging on by a thread.

Sasuke did as he was told and unsheathed the sword on his father's waist. Yet he couldn't bring himself to do that which he was meant to do with the sword.

"Now Sasuke, it is finally time for you to ascend to the Uchiha's throne. That blade you hold, I've sharpened it throughout the years using the blood of our enemies. Now you must use it to draw the blood of its very wielder. Slay me…and with it you shall unleash a power so great that only a few in the history of shinobi have ever wielded it."

"B-But father…" Sasuke's heart was beating out of control. He knew this moment would come one day but he was still not prepared. No child could ever be prepared to take their parent's life. Thus Sasuke could barely even get himself to move.

"This is no time to hesitate! I've worked far too hard to prepare you for this moment. The torch must be passed and you must lead the Uchiha in our promised role. Neither Itachi nor Shisui are capable of taking on this role. You alone can do this. You alone have the mental fortitude to embrace what is to come. Therefore you must not hesitate, Sasuke!"

With his hands shaking violently, Sasuke raised his father's sword and pointed its tip towards the dying Uchiha.

"Do it now before it is too late! I'm not going to last much longer!" Fugaku coughed up a pool of blood and could barely breathe properly.

Yet Sasuke seemed like he was in a trance. He just couldn't bring the sword down.

"SASUUUUUUUUKKKKKKKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Fugaku screamed with every ounce of energy that he had left, breaking his son out of his catatonic state.

Sasuke shut his eyes closed forcefully and with every bit of strength in his body, drove the sword downwards and straight through his father's heart. The sickening squelch of metal piercing flesh ripped through his ears and confirmed the act that he had just performed. There was no denying it. Sasuke opened his eyes ever so slowly and saw the sight he dreaded so much. A huge pool of blood had formed around his father's body which had spread around Sasuke's legs as his sword had pierced right through Fugaku's heart.

Sasuke dropped on his knees in shock and despair. Yet despite this traumatic visual that Sasuke saw, there was a satisfied smile on his father's face.

"I'm proud of you….Sasuke. You must…bring forth…true peace…" And with those final words, just like that, Fugaku was no more.

Several tears rolled down Sasuke's face, who was normally known to be rather emotionless. The man he had just killed was his father after all – the father that taught him everything, the father that he spent so much time with, the father that he shared a special bond with. Among all his family members, Sasuke was closest to his father due to being trained by him to succeed the Uchiha clan one day. Now his father was gone, and he was the one who brought about his end. That thought conjured up a sick feeling within him unlike he had ever felt before. The emotional trauma felt overwhelming as he basked in the condemnation of the disgusting act he had just performed. That mental pain suddenly became far more tangible as the young Uchiha's eyes started to throb out of control. But this was all part of Fugaku's plan.

Sasuke grasped his eyes with both hands and screamed from the agony. It was as though his eyes were burning, yet as that moment of unbearable suffering subsided within seconds, Sasuke felt like he had ascended beyond all of his previous limitations to a state of unimaginable power unlike anything he had ever wielded before.

Sasuke opened his eyes to see the world in a completely different light, for he had just unlocked the true power of his clan's bloodline. And that feeling was euphoric. It was as though he had just gone from the lowest of lows to reach the highest of highs. "So these are the eyes father sought to awaken within me. This…is the Mangekyou Sharingan."

As he became accustomed to the true power of the Sharingan, Sasuke remembered everything his father had taught him about these eyes that he would activate one day and the tasks that he would need to complete once that happened. Sasuke knew he had to act and fast, especially because the Hokage was still alive. There was no time for hesitation or remorse, just as his father taught him.

"Forgive me, but as planned, I will be borrowing these eyes of yours and the powers therein." In what appeared as a remorseless act, Sasuke harvested the eyes from his father's body without letting his emotions hinder their grand plan. He then stood up and pulled out the sword from his Fugaku's heart, wiping the blood on it before sheathing it. This would be the final gift he received from his father – a passing of the torch per se.

Sasuke turned around and looked further into the woods, only to have someone walk towards him from therein. A woman of a dark complexion, one who was a defected ex-Kumogakure shinobi that now lived in Konoha as Chouji's wife now stood next to Fugaku's body. Karui looked to be in a cataleptic state as she was currently under the influence of the Sharingan's genjutsu that got her to come all the way out here. She pulled out a sword and stabbed it precisely into the wound that Sasuke had created to kill his father. Yet another part of Fugaku's plan.

Thus with Sasuke's job here now complete, he started to walk out of the scene of the crime, but only after taking one final glance at the man who had bestowed him with such great power and prepared him for this insurmountable role. "Rest easy father, for I shall now take your place in the Uchiha's throne, leading the clan in its rightful course. Soon Konoha itself will once again belong to its true creators, and with it we will bring about true peace upon this shinobi world."

Feeling empowered by the Mangekyou Sharingan, there was true conviction behind Sasuke's final words to his father. Yet that confidence almost sounded like it was mixed in with a hint of insanity as the new leader of the Uchiha as he headed back to Konoha to put his plans into action.

 **Back in Kumogakure…**

Yet another pair of Mangekyou Sharingan was activated, this time by Minato. He had just arrived at the scene of the Raikage's assassination and saw Hinata at the brink of being burnt alive by the Uchiha's black flames while Naruto struggled helplessly to save her. The situation reminded him of Obito and how he had lost Rin, the one he loved with all his heart, due to the Uchiha's scheming. He remembered clearly his student's final wish: _"Sensei…take my eyes…and use the Mangekyou Sharingan to stop anyone else from falling victim to the Uchiha."_

Minato targeted his vision on a spot right above Hinata and focused every ounce of energy he could muster to tear a hole in the fabric of space-time on that spot. He then used his eyes to carefully pull away the flames from Hinata's body and dragged them into a different dimension. This process required an incredible amount of concentration and control over his eyes as too much pull from the dimensional rift would pull Hinata in along with the flames, and too little would not get rid of the flames. However, given Minato's mastery of his eyes, he was able to tear away all the flames from Hinata's body and safely closed the rift above her.

As soon as the process was finished, Minato dropped to his knees momentarily, his eyes bleeding from the stress. But he knew he didn't have any time to waste. "MENMA, GET THEM OUT OF HERE NOW!"

"Y-Yes!" Menma instantly realised his father's orders and grabbed both Naruto and Hinata.

Given the commotion surrounding the Kumogakure shinobi running to their Raikage's aid, both Minato as well as Menma were able to take that opportunity to teleport out of the place.

Menma dropped a little distance outside of Kumogakure with his brother and sister-in-law. He was taking deep breaths from being utterly exhausted. "Wow…I barely got us out of the village. Just teleporting long distances by myself is tiring, but doing so with multiple people completely drains me. Anyway, we're running the rest of the way to our rendezvous point. Let's move!"

Naruto checked Hinata's pulse to ensure that she was indeed alive and only unconscious. The sense of relief and gratitude he felt right now could not be described in words. It was as though he had just woken up from the most horrific nightmare that he had ever seen. He took off the beaten up jacket he was wearing and wrapped it around Hinata's body given that her clothes had been completely burned in the back and were barely hanging on to her.

Once he ensured that his wife was well, Naruto now turned towards Menma and grabbed the younger Uzumaki's collar with his working right hand and glared daggers into him. "YOU THINK I'M COMING WITH YOU AFTER WHAT YOU PULLED EARLIER!? YOU STOPPED ME FROM GETTING TO MY WIFE WHO NEEDED MY HELP AT THAT MOMENT MORE SO THAN EVER BEFORE!"

Menma was taken aback by his brother's shouting at first, but he quickly regained his composure and grabbed his collar back. "AND WHAT EXACTLY WERE YOU GOING TO DO AFTER GETTING TO HER ANYWAY IN THE PITIFUL STATE YOU WERE IN!? GET BURNED ALIVE!? I WAS ONLY FULFILLING HER FINAL WISH BECAUSE I FELT BAD FOR THE TWO OF YOU!"

"I DON'T NEED YOUR PITY!"

"WELL THEN SHUT IT! AFTER HELPING YOU OUT IN THAT WARZONE OUT THERE, THIS IS THE GRATITUDE I GET!? I WOULD LEAVE YOU HERE RIGHT NOW IF IT WAS UP TO ME, BUT I MADE A PROMISE TO MY PARENTS TO HELP YOU TWO OUT AND I DON'T GO BACK ON MY WORDS! BESIDES, SHE MAY HAVE SURVIVED, BUT SHE'S STILL IN PRETTY BAD SHAPE! SHE NEEDS TO BE TAKEN TO A DOCTOR ASAP! YOU THINK YOU CAN FIND ONE OUT HERE BY YOURSELF!?" Menma argued his case while pointing at Hinata, trying his best to bring his voice down. "Also, don't you want to see your son again? Isn't he the one you two were fighting for?"

Naruto calmed himself down after hearing of Menma's points. Clearly his intentions did not seem malicious, even though Naruto was still not happy with them to say the least. But right now he needed to prioritise the safety of his family, so he decided to put his anger aside for their sake at least. He needed to be level-headed right now, a trait that the Hokage needed to possess at all times. "Fine…lead the way." He requested.

"Good to see that you're back to your senses. My parents have saved the child and should be waiting for us a little further in the mountains. They're the ones who saved your wife as well. Once we meet up with them we should be able to take her to get treated. Follow me."

Naruto picked up Hinata and placed her body over his shoulder as he followed behind Menma given that his left hand was completely un-operational. While they were travelling, Menma's previous statement piqued his interest. "I did vaguely sense someone get Boruto and him suddenly disappear from the village, as though he was teleported out. You just said that your parents rescued him. I hope you're speaking the truth, for your own sake. On that matter, who the heck are your parents? I can tell that you're an Uzumaki and that's a huge question in and of itself, but why are you helping us anyway? Who are YOU even?"

 _"I think I did refer to him as Nii-san at one point earlier, but I guess he must not have heard it clearly in the commotion...not that I blame him given the chaotic situation surrounding his wife."_ Menma sighed at Naruto's questioning and the thought of what his reaction was going to be after he finds out about their relationship. "Just follow me. You'll know soon enough."

It wasn't long before they arrived at the designated rendezvous point within the mountains. Naruto sat down on the ground and placed Hinata gently next to him, checking to make sure she was still okay. At this point all the injuries he had sustained and the exhaustion was making it difficult for him to stay conscious.

"Where are they?" He asked.

Just as he finished that question, he could hear an all too familiar "Tou-chan" and "Kaa-chan" from the distance. Naruto turned his head to see his son running towards him with a huge smile across his face. It wasn't long before Boruto jumped into his father and engulfed him in a giant hug. His son's embrace drained away all the worries that had been plaguing him thus far. He was safe after all and Naruto couldn't ask for anything better.

However, as Boruto moved his attention to his mother, he was suddenly overcome with fear. "W-What happened to her!?"

"It's okay Boruto. She's just unconscious. She fought incredibly hard to save you and suffered some injuries, but she'll be fine." Naruto quickly comforted his son in order to not worry him.

"Really?" Boruto looked at his father with hopeful eyes.

Naruto nodded in response, reducing some of his son's concerns.

"Well, it would appear everyone's managed to come out in one piece." A new voice got Naruto to turn his head, only for him to find the masked man who referred to himself as Tobi approach him – the same person he fought to protect Boruto from some time ago. He was instantly on edge, but at the same time he recognised this masked man to be the same person that saved Hinata earlier as well, leaving him confounded as to the man's true motives. During that state of confusion, the mysterious person finally took off his mask to reveal his true identity.

"Do you still recognise me, Naruto?" Tobi asked with a gentle smile.

It took a moment as it had been 20 years since the last time Naruto had seen him, but that smile, that voice, the blonde hair – there was no mistaking it. At that moment as realisation struck him, Naruto's world was completely flipped upside down and he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He thought it was a mistake, but it couldn't be. This was absolutely real. There he was, standing right in front of Naruto right now, alive – his father.

"Dad…" Naruto uttered that one word in disbelief.

"That's right son, it has been a long time indeed." Minato activated his Sharingan and using it he placed Naruto in a genjutsu, putting him to sleep. "Rest well for now Naruto. There is much we have to catch up on when you wake up, but I'm glad to be able to meet you face to face once again."

Thus, as Sasuke lost his father, Naruto was reunited with his.

* * *

It's time to shift focus for the next few chapters on Naruto's reunion with his parents. Hope you're looking forward to it.

From last chapter, I was glad to see that some of you picked up on the inspirations for some of Himawari's mannerisms. Just as **DarkestLightOfHope** and **superduckman100** mentioned, the two characters in particular are Kobato Hasegawa and Megumin, as well as Rikka Takanashi, the Chuunibyou queen.

 **SpicyWifey, jenuzumaki , NarHina, TheMysteriousPerson -0-'-0:** I wanted to elaborate a little on how Hinata survived Fugaku's attack, because as all of you mentioned, there were several ways in which she could be saved. I wanted all of Naruto's family to play a major part in helping him in the fight, so I intentionally kept Minato mostly in the background rescuing Boruto until this crucial moment where he would swoop in like the badass he is and save the day.

I got to admit though, it was great to see a lot of your concerns for Hinata. As you saw last chapter, she turned out fine and in the next few chapters you'll see her relationship with Naruto become fully mended. Now the real question is, when will Himawari be conceived? Well, you may just find out...

In any case, that is all I have for today. As always I would love to hear your thoughts. Until next time, take care!


	43. The Uzumaki Family Part 1

**The Uzumaki Family Part 1**

* * *

Naruto's eyes opened wide and he jolted up in his bed. It felt like he just woke up from a terrible nightmare. His vision was still a little blurry from just regaining his consciousness, but as he started to calibrate to his surroundings, he could see that he was in a hospital.

A young red haired woman wearing a white doctor's coat stood close by with a clipboard at hand and looked at him curiously.

"Don't move your hand around so haphazardly. You don't want to aggravate those injuries." She advised him somewhat strictly.

Naruto looked down at his left hand and that it was heavily plastered. It was still broken but seemed to be in much better shape, to the point where it could be moved about without much pain.

"Where am I?" Naruto asked the doctor a bit groggily.

"This is the Amegakure Central Hospital. You've been unconscious for the past 3 days and we've been treating you since. Considering the gruelling battle that you went through, I'm hardly surprised. Kumogakure and the clash between the Hokage and Raikage have been all over the news. Plus with the assassination of the Raikage and the huge blow to his village, Kumogakure seems to be in a very weak state. You were in the centre of it all. That being said, your physical condition is starting to recover already, as is expected from an Uzumaki."

Naruto remembered everything that happened and just the thoughts brought him serious headache. The situation surrounding Kumogakure and the Raikage was not what Naruto wanted at all, yet he was forced to fight for the sake of his son and nearly lost something invaluable in the process. The political implications of his moves would be quite dire.

"Are you okay?" Karin asked out of concern.

"Yes, I'm fine. Just felt a little nauseous is all. You said I've been here for 3 days. How did I get here?"

"Your family brought you here."

Naruto's heart nearly jumped up to his throat. So it wasn't a dream after all. He really did meet his father before passing out. "Are you for real? You mean my father, Minato Namikaze is still alive?"

"Of course."

Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing His father was alive and well. The family that he thought he had lost, it was still there. He needed to know more.

"Can you tell me where he is? I want to meet him." Naruto got out of bed and was ready to head out.

"W-Wait! No need to rush. Minato-san said that he'll visit you once you're awake. We'll inform him that you've regained consciousness. So please, take it easy for a bit. You did suffer a lot of injuries."

Although Naruto wanted to talk to his father, he realised there was something even more important he needed to tend to right now, and that was his wife who had nearly sacrificed her life to save him. "My wife, Hinata, where is she? Is she okay? I want…no…I HAVE to see her!"

Karin could see the concern in Naruto's eyes for his loved one and nodded lightly. "She is fine. Her injuries were not life threatening. You were lucky that Minato-san was able to stop the black flames from spreading too far and causing any fatal harm. That being said, although her life is not in danger, she did suffer some serious third degree burns – some of the worst we've ever seen. We did our best with a skin grafting surgery, but it'll take time before she recovers any feeling on her back since the flames damaged much of the nervous system in that region."

Naruto sighed a breath of relief as though a great weight had been lifted off his body. "You mean she'll be recover? I'm so glad. If something were to happen to her because of me, I could never forgive himself."

"Functionally yes, she should recover. But she's been a bit down since she regained consciousness earlier."

"Eh? Why?" Naruto asked in a confused tone, now a little worried again.

"She hasn't talked about it in detail but I think she's feeling a little self-conscious about her terrible scars. Perhaps she feels sorry about it. The nervous system may heal, but the scars she has received will most likely remain with her for the rest of her life."

"She received those scars because of me. If anyone should be sorry, it should be me. There's nothing for her to feel bad about."

"Well, she's a woman after all. I think all women worry to some degree about what their significant other thinks about their appearance."

"I see…well even then, those don't matter to me at all. I need to see her. Will it be possible for me to do so right now?" Naruto requested.

"I don't see why not. I'll guide you there." Karin pointed towards the door and walked out.

"Thanks doctor." Naruto replied and followed after her.

While the two walked down the hallway, Karin seemed to be glancing at Naruto in a revering manner, especially after talking to him. It made Naruto a bit self-conscious.

"I-Is something wrong with me?" He asked as calmly as possible, not wanting to ruffle any feathers. The girl did treat him and Hinata after all.

"No! I do beg your pardon. I didn't mean to stare. It's just that…you're Uzumaki Naruto correct, the Fourth Hokage? I mean, I already know but just to confirm."

"Y-Yes." Naruto stuttered out a reply, not sure why he had to say it when she just admitted she already knew.

"Just as I thought! You see, you're actually quite famous around these parts. To think that one of our own could become the Hokage despite our clan's history is almost unfathomable. Yet despite that you've made the impossible possible with your hard work and determination. You've made the Uzumaki proud."

"I felt like I sensed something familiar, but are you really an Uzumaki?"

"I thought the red hair would have been a dead giveaway."

"Wait, that means there are other Uzumaki around as well? Didn't the Uzumaki clan perish long ago with Uzushiogakure?" Naruto questioned with a perplexed look.

"That is true, but there was a small group that survived – a bunch of whom eventually resettled here in Amegakure. The people here were kind and hospitable enough to host the survivors of our clan back then. Over time, the clan has expanded somewhat and become an integral part of this village. Needless to say, when we found out that one of the descendants of our once nearly extinct clan had become the Hokage, it was unbelievable. You're perhaps the greatest shinobi our clan has ever produced." Karin complimented with a genuine look of joy, one that made Naruto blush.

"I-I don't know if I'm THAT good. I just do my best."

Karin and Naruto finally arrived in front of the door to Hinata's room and the two came to a stop.

"Hinata-san is inside. As I mentioned before – her recovery is coming along well but she's a bit self-conscious about the scars she's received. I'm sure you can take care of that in your own way. So be kind to her. Not that I need to say that."

"Leave it to me!" Naruto gave Karin a confident reply. "By the way, you didn't tell me your name."

"I'm Karin. Uzumaki Karin. Nice to meet you. I'll be seeing you around later." Karin responded with a smile and left the couple to their own devices.

Naruto knocked on the door a few times and heard an audible reply of "Come in". This gave him his cue and he slowly opened the door to a moderately sized yet very well kept private hospital room with a large window on the other side overlooking the rather industrialised village of Amegakure given that they were on the tenth floor of the hospital. Hinata sat on a spacious bed in the middle of the room and was clutching on to Naruto's torn and tattered jacket that he put around her after she had passed out during the battle.

Hinata turned to see the newcomer and instantly there was a smile on her face. "Naruto-kun, you're okay!"

Naruto couldn't hold his emotions in any longer. He rushed towards his wife and wrapped her in a tight embrace – as tight as he possibly could without hurting her. Tears started to roll down his eyes from a deep sense of relief and gratitude. "Hinata, I'm so glad you're alive! Even if I tried, I couldn't describe with words how happy I am right now. Back then, during that moment, I honestly thought I was going to lose you. It was the most horrifying feeling of my life. Just thinking about it sends shivers down my spine. What were you thinking? How do you think I would feel if something were to happen to you?"

Hinata was a little taken aback by Naruto's outburst but understood his quandary. She would be the same way had Naruto done something similar for her. So she gently patted the back of his head in order to calm him down. "I don't know. Maybe I wasn't thinking. All I knew at that moment was that the one I loved was in danger and I didn't have any power left to stop the enemy. The only thing I could do is throw myself in front of the attack in order to protect him. It was like an involuntary reaction."

"I don't ever want to feel that way again. Please don't do something like that ever again. Promise me you will take care of yourself!"

"Okay." Hinata gave a meek reply as she was overwhelmed by the comforting warmth of her significant other after so many years – the warmth that she had longed for every single day since their separation. She didn't want this moment to end. Alas, that was not to be as Naruto separated from her mere moments later. But that was okay. They would have more chances to confide in each other from now on.

Naruto lowered his gaze from Hinata and looked downcast, something that was unlike him.

This prompted Hinata to raise his face by the chin and enquire about the matter. "What's wrong Naruto-kun? You seem to not be in the best of spirits."

"I…even though I promised I'd protect you, because of me your life was put in danger. In a way, I couldn't keep my promise."

Hinata shook her head side to side and caressed Naruto's face gently in response. "That's not true. You kept your promise. No…you went above and beyond that promise. Despite the fact that I was the one who ran away, you still chased after me for so many years, never once giving up. Despite being the Hokage, you didn't hesitate one second to throw away your status if need be in order to save your son. Through your actions, you proved to me and Boruto how much we truly meant to you. If not for you, realistically speaking, I most likely would not have been able save him by myself. Yet I on the other hand only doubted the promise you made so many years ago. Even though I tried to convince myself that I made the right decision back then, deep inside I always regretted not putting my faith in you. That feeling was amplified as I saw you fight tooth and nail with your very life at stake for our child, just as you had once promised. You lived up to your words, and I was the only one who didn't. That is why, this time, I wanted to be the one to defend you Naruto-kun. Without even thinking about it, I felt that by protecting you, I could also right the wrongs of my actions and show you how much I truly cared."

Naruto's eyes widened at Hinata's words as tears now started rolling down her eyes as well, and he wrapped her in another embrace, this time a little more gently. "Thank you Hinata. But your promise, it was to stay by my side forever. Therefore, you can't throw away your life like that, no matter what the reason. I just want my precious family by my side, the family that I've wanted for so long. You, me and Boruto. Let's be together from now on."

Hinata give a quiet yet firm "Yes" in response.

The two held on to one another in silence for several minutes, just basking in this moment of peace and tranquillity, before reluctantly parting. After so many years, both of them once again felt truly complete. If they could, they would spend the rest of their lives in that moment. But alas that simply wasn't realistic.

"Incidentally, where is Boruto?" Naruto asked.

"I talked to him on the phone earlier. He should be on his way here soon."

Naruto was about to ask her about where their son was currently when he was suddenly shocked motionless by the piece of garment that Hinata pulled out from within the pocket of his battered jacket that she was holding on to earlier.

"By the way Naruto-kun, care to explain how this happened to come into your possession?" Hinata squinted her eyes and gave Naruto a very an interrogating look while holding on to a pair of pure white panties.

"Ugh…" Naruto gulped hard at the sight of her panties that he had stolen in one of the occasions where he went to meet Boruto at his house. He had been carrying it with him since because of…reasons…and had forgotten to take it out of his jacket's pocket. Now because of his carelessness Hinata had discovered them and there was no running away at this point.

"I was wondering what happened to my favourite pair of panties, but to think you of all people would have stolen it. Has my husband become a lowly panty thief in my absence?" Hinata questioned almost emotionlessly.

Naruto frantically tried to come up with an excuse but to no avail. There was no point. Thus he decided to come clean and go all out. "That's not it at all! I don't care about panties at all…actually scratch that. I do care about panties, only when they are yours! That's why I stole them!"

Hinata was shocked speechless by Naruto's confession. Needless to say, she did not see it coming at all and blushed a bright tinge of red. "W-W-What are you saying!?"

"I'm telling the truth. I just couldn't help myself since I was backed up in all sorts of ways! Please forgive me. I won't do it again!"

Hinata's face looked like it was about to burst into a huge display of fireworks any second. "I-I'm sorry…for not taking care…of that…as your wife. I'll overlook your actions, just this time."

Seeing Hinata all coy after so many years brought out the mischievous side in Naruto once more. He loved playing these cat and mouse games with her, and he knew exactly which buttons of hers to push in these instances. This time was no different. Thus he slipped his hand behind her waist and pulled her closer to him until their noses were inches apart.

In one swift motion Naruto snatched away the panties from her hand as a sideways smirk appeared on his face. "Besides Hinata, these won't be necessary antmore. I've got the real thing right in front of me after all."

As soon as her brain registered the implied meaning behind Naruto's words, she became so red that it looked like smoke would rise from her head any second. She pushed Naruto away lightly in order to create some distance between them.

"I'm not emotionally or p-p-p-p-p-p-p-physically prepared yet! Not after a-a-a-a-all these years!" Hinata barely managed to stutter out, but this only gave more ammunition for Naruto to tease her.

"Whatever might you be talking about Hinata?" Naruto feigned innocence. "I don't remember bringing up anything "physical". I only said that the real Hinata is in front of me. Or maybe…you were thinking something dirty?"

Hinata couldn't take being toyed around with any longer.

"NARUTO-KUN ECCHI! GIVE ME BACK MY PANTIES!" She yelled before lunging towards her husband and the two of them got into a playful tug of war on the bed with Hinata trying to take back her undergarment and Naruto doing his best to keep it away from her.

At the end of their little struggle, Hinata had somehow managed to end up on top of Naruto with her hands pinning down his functioning one, the little piece of clothing now nearly within her grasp. She was so focused on taking it back though that Hinata didn't realise the precarious position she and Naruto were in right now.

And just as luck would have it, the doors to the room opened at that very moment and Naruto's mother peered into the room only to find her daughter-in-law on top of her son, pinning him down below her while he held on to her panties.

Kushina's eyes widened and her jaws slackened at the sight before her. It took her brain a few seconds to process a response, but as soon as she realised what was going on, she quickly shut the doors once again with force.

"I get young people are into trying out…new experiences…but please don't hurt him too badly!" Kushina shouted from the other side of the door.

"What's going on?" Minato asked Kushina as he along with Menma and Boruto arrived on the scene.

"I don't think this is something we should know about, especially not Boruto."

His wife's response only confused Minato even further.

Inside the room Naruto and Hinata were frozen solid in shock ever since the interruption, but they regained their senses after hearing the conversation outside.

"IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK!" They both shouted in unison. "You can come in!"

Naruto and Hinata sat up properly in bed in anticipation of their visitors. The door opened once more and this time Boruto made a beeline towards his parents and jumped into their arms.

"KAA-CHAN! TOU-CHAN! You're both finally awake! The doctor said you'd be okay but I was still so worried."

"Sorry to worry you dear." Hinata replied while giving her beloved son a hug. "I'm just glad that it is you who are safe and sound."

Naruto patted Boruto gently on the head. "Of course he's doing just fine. He's my son after all."

Almost on cue, at that moment Naruto turned his head only to find his older, battle hardened father walk into the room with two other people in tow. It wasn't a dream after all. Him meeting his father was actually a reality.

Minato awkwardly waved his hand at his son, not sure how to approach him after so many years. "It's been a long time, hasn't it Naruto?"

Even though his father may have aged, his voice still sounded so familiar. Naruto didn't know how to respond. The father that he thought died 20 years ago was still alive and standing in front of him right now. It was surreal.

Naruto slowly walked over to Minato and placed his hand on his face as if to ensure that he wasn't hallucinating. The gravity of the situation was truly starting to sink in.

"Dad…is it really you? You are really alive?" Naruto asked, almost in a trace.

Minato nodded back. "Indeed I'm alive Naruto and I couldn't be happier to be face to face with you once again."

It was one emotional blow after another for Naruto today. First it was Hinata and now it was his father. He had to wipe off the tears that welled up in his eyes once more. He didn't remember the last time he cried this much in one day. But these were happy tears, for he was not only reunited with his wife, but his father as well – two of the most precious people that ever graced his life.

"It's okay Naruto. There's no need to cry." Minato gently ruffled his son's hair in order to calm him down a bit, but Naruto was still wiping his eyes. The tears simply would not stop.

"This is just…too much. It's unbelievable."

It took a while during which Minato waited patiently before Naruto was able to regain his composure a bit. At that point he realised it was time to introduce the other two members of his family.

"Naruto, I know this is a lot for you to take in at once, but I want you to meet two more people, one's who are of unparalleled importance to both me and you. Allow me to introduce you to them." Minato stepped aside and stood next to his son, revealing a red haired woman and the other blonde haired young man. "I want you to meet the other members of your family – your mother Kushina and your younger brother Menma."

Naruto looked at the two in disbelief. How was all this possible? Not only was his father alive, but his mother too? Now he had a younger brother as well? There were so many questions racing through his mind right now. Even since childhood, he knew that his mother had died soon after giving birth to him. Yet she was alive, even with a younger child.

"W-What is going on? Ever since I was a kid, mother was never with us. Neither do I remember having any siblings. How is this possible?" Naruto enquired anxiously. He was starting to become restless and needed some answers.

"It is a long story Naruto but I met your mother once again after the entire incident with Kumogakure where I was pronounced both dead and a traitor in Konoha. It was not too long after that Menma was born."

Something felt wrong about that statement. After hearing that piece of information, Naruto's demeanour started to take a turn for the worse as he was reminded of the struggles that he went through in Konoha to defend his dead father's honour. Yet that father was alive all along, living with his wife and newborn child. Then what exactly was he fighting for all that time? That critical thought crossed his mind for the very first time.

"So you were here with mother all this time then?" He asked his father, his voice shaking a bit.

"Yes..." Minato replied, but he instantly regretted it given that the atmosphere around Naruto almost seemed to become dark and heavy. He was no longer even making eye contact anymore. "But I…"

Before his father could finish, Naruto interjected. "So while I struggled in Konoha by myself…you were busy making babies with mom?" He asked a very pointed question, not a hint of jest in his voice. This was almost starting to become an existential crisis for Naruto. Everything that he believed his whole life, everything that he fought for may have been for naught all along. Anger was starting to overtake him at this point.

Minato realised this and quickly tried to come to his own defence. "Wait Naruto, listen. Please let me ex-"

Before he could finish, in the blink of an eye, Minato felt a Rasengan get shoved into his midsection and he was sent flying through the nearest wall and into the next room by Naruto. The entire hospital floor shook from the impact. An audible gasp of shock emanated across the room from the others that were present. They couldn't believe what had just transpired.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!? IS THAT ANY WAY TO TREAT YOUR OWN FATHER!?" Menma was furious and grabbed his brother's shoulder from behind in order to turn him around.

In response, Naruto spun around and delivered a powerful kick right across his midsection that sent Menma flying into the wall on the other side of the room.

Menma's head spun from the impact as he dropped to his knees on the ground. "WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"

"What exactly do you know about me!? You've had your parents beside you. Someone like you would never understand what I've been through, left all alone in this world. So don't you DARE try to lecture me on what I should and should not be doing!" Naruto spat venomously at his brother before pointing a finger towards his father. "For years I defended that man's honour. I went through so much pain and hardship in order to stand up against everyone, despite all their hatred, for his sake, because I believed that he gave up his life for the village, and the people he fought for misunderstood him. Yet all along he was alive and never once did he come to save me from that mess, from amidst the enemies that wanted me gone all along. This is how much I meant to him!"

Naruto's words were filled with pain because for as long as he could remember, his father had always been his role model, the one he looked up to, the one whose footsteps he wanted to walk in. Yet his actions now contradicted Naruto's ideal view of his father and he felt lost inside.

On the other hand Menma wanted nothing more but to defend his father's honour. Thus sparks started to fly between the siblings.

At that moment Kushina quickly jumped in between her two children, giving Naruto a pleading look. "Please, don't fight. You're brothers."

Even though Naruto wanted to respond kindly to his mother, the one person he had always wanted to meet his whole life, he just couldn't bring himself to do that. His anger clouded his judgement and he glared at her.

"You have no right to order me." With those final words, Naruto stormed out of the hospital room in a fit of rage.

Both Kushina and Hinata rushed over to Minato in order to check up on him.

"Are you okay?" Kushina asked out of concern.

"Y-Yeah, I'll be fine." Minato replied as he sat up in his position. "I guess things went just about as badly as we expected."

"Please forgive Naruto-kun for his actions. I'm certain he didn't mean what he said." Hinata apologised profusely on her husband's behalf.

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about Hinata. As his parents we deserve nothing less for putting him through all that we have. We are terrible people." Kushina answered with a wry smile, the pain clearly evident on her face. Naruto's final words to her truly did hurt.

"Please don't say that. I know that's not true because you've saved my life not once, but twice now. The two of you even rescued Boruto from the grasp of Kumogakure. There's no way I could ever repay those debts to you. That is why I'll put my faith in you."

Both Minato and Kushina were taken aback by how kind and considerate Hinata was.

"I knew that you were a kind soul, especially knowing your mother, but you're almost too kind to a fault Hinata. We're not that deserving. But I'm glad that my son managed to find such a caring wife." Kushina replied.

"Please, you flatter me too much. I'm not perfect by any means. I'm also at fault here for Naruto-kun's outburst. For as long as I've known him, he's always wanted a family. First he lost his father, then I ran away. He has definitely developed an abandonment complex because of that. So please, allow me to talk to him. I'll convince him to at least listen to your sides of the story. That is the least I can do for everything you've done for us." Hinata assured her in-laws.

"Thank you Hinata." They both responded to her gracious words in unison.

"Boruto, stay here with your grandparents. I'll go talk to your father for a bit." Hinata advised her son before running off after her husband.

Thus the first proper encounter between the Uzumaki family members did not go all too well.

* * *

Did anyone else remember the small little incident where Naruto stole Hinata's panties? I thought it would be hilarious to follow it up at some point.

In any case, let's talk a little about some of your comments:

 **NarHina:** If you look at Himawari's age and the time skip in the earlier chapter, you are right, it won't be long from now that she'll be born. As for another point you made about Himawari's eyes being special, well - there might just be some truth to it. But you'll see when we get there in a bit. For now it'll be about Naruto and his parents.

 **shinigami-shane:** You know, it's funny you say that because in the chapter where Hinata almost died, the most common point (rightfully so) was that Minato was around and he could have saved her. In regards to Naruto falling for the sleep genjutsu (or just taking a beating in general towards the end) - take a look at the last 10 or so chapters and see everything he went through. First the huge battle with Hinata where he deliberately lost all his power in the end in order to make it a draw, then taking on a large part of Kumogakure's shinobi force and finally fighting the Raikage himself. You take any normal shinobi and they would be dead by that point. Within the context of this story, Naruto doesn't have a fox constantly healing him and supplying him with an endless source of power. He isn't the descendant of some uber-powerful shinobi either that makes him far superior in strength to 99.99% of the human population. He's just an Uzumaki, albeit a special one, who got strong through training and hard work. He doesn't have any super secret sauce, and whether some may like it or not, that is the type of Naruto I chose to write and I'm going to try my best to remain consistent in that regard. Therefore, Hokage or not, by the time he met Minato, he was barely even able to stay conscious after everything he went through. Falling to his genjutsu (no matter how simple) at that point does not make him weak - it just means he's human. Hope I wasn't being rude. Just wanted to explain my perspective on Naruto's power level in this story.

 **mrenteria99:** Don't sweat it! Some of it just comes with the territory. Glad you liked it so far.

 **DarkestLightOfHope:** That's a very interesting perspective given that I don't think I've made Sasuke very likeable in this story. But I agree, Naruto's reunion with his parents was long overdue.

 **Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf** **:** When I take a step back and see everything that's happened, I gotta agree, Boruto barely ever seems to get a break. It's just one thing after another for him. Well, he'll get some peace soon.

That is all for today. As always I'd love to hear your thoughts. Until next time, take care! This summer heat is destroying me right now.


	44. The Uzumaki Family Part 2

**The Uzumaki Family Part 2**

* * *

Hinata used her Byakugan and within seconds was able to locate Naruto's whereabouts. She took the stairs and made her way up to the rooftop of the hospital, which was completely empty right now apart from the presence of just one other person. Naruto was sitting on the floor with his head held down while leaning back against the railing on one of the far edges of the rooftop.

Hinata walked up and sat down next to him, placing a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Tell me Hinata…what was I supposed to do?" Naruto asked in a dejected tone, still with his head down, which made it difficult for Hinata to see his expression. But she could guess how he was feeling. "How am I supposed to accept all this? Everything I've fought for…everything I've known for years…it all just seems like a lie to me at this point."

"Naruto-kun…"

"My parents, they didn't care what happened to me. They replaced me. They left me high and dry as a little kid amidst enemies that wanted me gone for good. Yet I looked up to them so much. How foolish I was, dreaming of having the family that I never had, not knowing they were here all along. This is not the kind of reunion that I had in mind. I don't want to feel this way about the parents whom I adored so much. The image I had of them in my mind and what they turned out to be is so starkly different that I don't know what to do anymore. I don't know what to think. Was I wrong to lash out at them like that? I didn't want to, yet I feel this deep sense of resentment towards them for abandoning me. I don't want to feel this way about my own family! Please…help me Hinata! Tell me what is right and what is wrong, because I don't know anymore!"

It was rarely that Naruto appeared so flustered. He was mostly a very upbeat type of person, but in this instance he appeared truly lost. As such Hinata wanted to be sensitive in how she responded. She wrapped her arm around him in order to hopefully bring him some comfort and relay to him the fact that he wasn't alone anymore.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but I don't know the answer that you're looking for. I'm not going to pretend to understand how you're truly feeling right now because I haven't faced your ordeal. But what I do know is the pain that you endured ever since childhood and how much your parents meant to you. I won't tell you to forgive them, but I can tell you the one thing that I'm certain about from what I've seen and faced myself." Hinata explained in the calmest way possible. "I don't think your parents are bad people Naruto-kun. Neither do I think they had bad intentions in mind for what they did. Admittedly, their choices may not have been perfect to say the least, but there must have been a reason behind why they made those choices."

"Maybe they didn't have bad intentions, but that doesn't change what I have gone through. I don't know if I could bring myself to face them after all that has happened."

"I think you should face them. Otherwise the conflicted feeling within you will never go away. I know this, because I felt it for so many years since leaving you. I thought I knew best, that I was the one who was right, but had you never chased after me, I would have never gotten over that internal conflict that ate away at me at all times. I don't want you to feel that way. That is why at the very least I think you should talk to your parents, whether you can forgive them or not in the end. There are always two sides to a story."

"I don't know…" Naruto uttered in confusion, but Hinata's words resonated with him and he started to loosen up on his firm stance ever so slightly. Maybe he ought to listen to his parents after all.

"Besides Naruto-kun, if it wasn't for your parents, neither I nor Boruto would be here with you right now. They have saved us both twice now."

Naruto looked at his wife in surprise. "Twice? What do you mean?"

"You do not know this, but it happened on the night I ran away from Konoha…" Hinata recalled the events of her being attacked by the masked man all those years ago and how Minato and Kushina had come to her aid, saving the lives of both herself and her yet to be born son. The two of them had done the same again once again, rescuing Boruto from the clutches of the Raikage and also saving Hinata from being burned alive.

"I didn't even know that such a thing happened…that my parents saved you two once before, and now again. First they leave me alone, but they still save my wife and child. I just don't understand their course of actions." Naruto was genuinely perplexed but at least now he could acknowledge the invaluable contributions his parents had made to keep his family from being lost.

"You see Naruto-kun. I owe your parents a debt I simply cannot repay, for saving my son…our son. That is why I really want you to hear them out, if not for yourself, then for me and Boruto. We are here together because of them. Surely you must want to find out why everything turned out the way it did."

Hinata's words and her little story helped Naruto to calm down quite a bit. He realised that he needed to know the truth about what happened to his parents and what their intentions were. Only then could he find a true resolution within himself. Thus Naruto stood up and extended his hand towards Hinata, pulling her up along with him.

"You're right. I do need to hear my parents' side of the story. Let's go." Naruto said with a determined look on his face.

Hinata nodded happily and thus the two of them returned back to the hospital room where his parents awaited. Upon their return they found that someone else had now joined Minato and Kushina – a somewhat frail, slightly older man somewhere in his late 30s. His dark red hair was a dead giveaway of his Uzumaki origins.

Upon seeing Naruto back, both of his parents stood at attention. Menma had taken Boruto out to play in order to allow the grown-ups to sort out their issues.

"Listen Naruto, I understand you're angry and you have every right to be. If you choose not to forgive us, we'll understand. If you want us out of your life, we will comply. Whatever punishment you deem fit for us, we'll accept happily. However, we have one last request to make to you Naruto. You have to listen to what this man has to say. It is of the utmost importance that you know this as the Hokage." Minato requested while pointing to the newcomer.

"Your father is right Naruto. I'm begging you. Even if you don't listen to us, you have to hear him out. There is a far greater threat here at play that transcends any discord we may have amongst us." Kushina added to her husband's request with all her heart.

Naruto could sense the urgency in his parents' tones and released a deep breath in order to calm himself. If this was information that he needed to know as the Hokage, then he would need to put his personal feelings aside and calmly assess the situation. "Very well. If it really is as important as you say, then I'll listen to what you have to say."

An expression of relief came over Minato and Kushina, one that made Hinata happy to see.

"Nagato, if you will." Minato urged the man standing quietly so far to join in.

Thus they all sat down and Nagato formally introduced himself. "I understand that the situation here is a bit volatile and I do apologise for interrupting at such an untimely manner. I hope you'll pardon my intrusion, Hokage-sama."

"Please, you can call me Naruto. No need to be so formal." Naruto said to the man casually, lightening the mood somewhat. Given that he became the Hokage not too long ago, Naruto still found it a bit unnerving when others referred to him with highly respectful honorifics, as he preferred a more relaxed setting.

Minato and Kushina felt a little happy inside to see that the friendly side of Naruto had not changed even after he became Hokage.

"Very well, if that is what you wish, then I will refer to you as Naruto. I've heard much about you from your parents, but it is very nice to finally meet you face to face. My name is Nagato Uzumaki. As my name suggests, I'm a member of the Uzumaki clan similar to your mother. To be a little more specific, I'm sort of an acting leader of the Uzumaki clan, or whatever little is left of it. I should preface by saying that it is a borrowed title and only by name. It's nowhere near as grandiose as it may sound. I simply happen to be the one that looks after the remaining members of our clan and ensure their wellbeing given that we are nowhere near as strong as we once used to be. The true heir to that title would in fact be you, Naruto Uzumaki, as you're the direct descendant of our final clan leader before Uzushiogakure was completely destroyed."

"Wait, I thought the Uzumaki clan was mostly extinct. Then how are you guys here?" Naruto asked curiously.

"The village of Uzushiogakure was burned down completely overnight and much of our clan perished along with it. However, there were a few who survived and scattered, a large section of whom then regrouped here in Amegakure. We've grown in size since as time passed. The subject of our clan is what we wished to talk to you about, as it is of paramount importance to what is happening in Konoha right now. As Hokage it is imperative you know this." Nagato elaborated. "I'm sure you've heard at least a little about the story of the Uzumaki clan and Uzushiogakure. But if I may ask, how much exactly do you know?"

"If I remember correctly from back in the academy days, we learned a bit about it when studying about the history of the ninja world. I think they said something about Uzushiogakure being destroyed during a war in the past. There wasn't too much detail given. That being said, when I got older I got naturally curious about the origin of the Uzumaki clan. So I visited Uzushiogakure myself. The place seemed like it was completely razed. I looked around the ruins and even found some scrolls detailing certain sealing jutsus. Most of them were completely destroyed and illegible though, which was a real shame since the ones I did manage to learn were some of the most powerful techniques I know."

"Ah, so you used those sealing techniques during our bout. They were very powerful indeed and quite unique. I've never seen anything quite like them." Hinata recalled, to which Naruto nodded.

"So you've already been to Uzushiogakure before. That should make everything easier to explain. The Uzumaki clan was known particularly for their prowess with a large variety of sealing techniques, and guidelines for their usage were stored in a large collection of scrolls to be passed on through the generations. Most of those scrolls were destroyed along with Uzushiogakure, but you must have found a few remnants. Those would have been passed on to you eventually anyway, if our clan still existed. But that's neither here, not there. Given that you're a descendant of our final true clan leader, it is important that I tell you what exactly what happened during the night when our village was destroyed. You'll find that this information will explain the current threat that you and your family find yourself in. It is after all the same enemy that destroyed our clan in the past which seeks to erase the final remnants of the Uzumaki at present."

Naruto's ears perked up and his expression hardened. "The same enemy? You mean to say you know who it is that has been targeting Hinata and Boruto thus far?"

Nagato nodded with a similarly serious look on his face.

"Please, I need to know the details here." Naruto demanded with all his strength.

"Very well, then let us start from the very beginning." Nagato cleared his throat in order to retell the story of his clan. "Hundreds of years ago before there existed any ninja villages, the shinobi world was embroiled in constant war. The history of our kind is one that is rooted in conflict after all. During that time, shinobi were nothing short of mercenaries, and clans constantly fought one another in order to gain power and territory. This period of time is known as the "Warring States Era" as you'll have heard of."

Both Naruto and Hinata shook their heads in agreement. Every shinobi knew of the era of great conflict that existed before the ninja villages came to be.

"These were truly dark times, filled with cutthroat tactics and endless bloodshed all for the sake of materialistic gain, perpetuated by a cycle of hatred and revenge. However, among the many clans that tried to establish their dominance above the rest, a few clans were infamous for their power. Among those clans, the Uzumaki were unanimously considered to the strongest and the greatest. We had everything – both numbers and skill. Very few could stand up to the Uzumaki. Because of this our clan owned an entire island all to itself, the place which later came to be known as the Land of Whirlpools, located just off the shore from the Land of Fire."

Naruto and Hinata listened to Nagato attentively. So far, most of the information was what they already knew. That was about to change though.

"However, the Uzumaki clan wasn't happy with the status quo of being embroiled in constant conflict. The clan leaders at the time wanted to find a way to create a place where his people could live in peace without being in threat from outsiders. They realised that the best way to do so would be to create alliances with other shinobi, which in turn would help create an abode that could be protected by all parties involved – strength in numbers if you will. Thus the clan leaders decided to attempt one of the greatest coalitions one could think of at the time. They invited the Hyuga clan to form an alliance with the Uzumaki clan, in which both clans would live alongside one another in harmony while looking out for the best interests of one another. Given that the Hyuga were almost as strong and notorious as the Uzumaki at the time, an alliance between the two clans meant that any enemy of either clan would stand no chance against their combined might and would have to think twice before making any moves. It would be of mutual benefit to both sides. Thus after much deliberation and negotiation, both clans decided to tie the knot and formed the first huge alliance between two of the strongest clans in existence at the time. This may seem rather simple now, but back then when there was rampant fighting and distrust between clans, such a union was truly unheard of. The Uzumaki and Hyuga clans started living alongside one another in a village created in the Land of Whirlpools. This village was named Uzushiogakure, and thus the very first prototype hidden ninja village was formed, one whose model would much later be followed by all the other ninja villages."

"Wow, really? I had no idea that there was such an alliance between the Uzumaki and Hyuga clans in the past. That's pretty crazy, don't you think, Hinata?" Naruto asked his wife, still a bit bewildered by the story.

Hinata on the other hand remembered a vague statement she once heard a long time ago in relation to this alliance. She was trying to remember but to no avail. All she recalled was that it wasn't good news. "Could you tell us more?" Hinata asked kindly.

"Many years passed as Uzushiogakure expanded even further with other clans being invited to join the village. Seeing two of the most well-renowned clans exist in harmony alongside one another, more shinobi became open to the idea joining together with others under one village. It was a great success. Uzushiogakure was now a bustling village with ninjas from various lands and walks of life, even ones who were once bitter enemies. By now the Uzumaki and Hyuga clans had almost become inseparable, bound together by a strong sense of trust and camaraderie. After all, the two clans together had managed to create a place unlike any other. And thus we finally arrive at the tale of our final clan leader..." So far Nagato was telling the story of his clan with great vigour, but his expression became sombre at the thought of where this was all headed. He continued regardless. "Our final clan leader shared a very close friendship with the then Hyuga leader, the two of them having known each other since childhood. One could say they were childhood friends given that the two clans had been living together for several generations at that point. In a lot of ways, it is almost as though your marriage is a direct progression to the close companionship your ancestors once shared."

Naruto and Hinata looked at each other and blushed ever so lightly at the comment. To think that their relationship had some form of historical tie was surprising to say the least. But they quickly focused on the tale at hand once more.

"The two clan leaders decided that they wanted to expand Uzushiogakure even further and take it to the next level. To do so they would invite the one final clan that was on par with them both in terms of power – the Uchiha. By forming a three way alliance between the Uzumaki, Hyuga and the Uchiha, the three strongest clans known far and wide across the shinobi world, this would set a new standard for all ninjas to co-exist with one another and finally bring an end to the warring States era". It was a lofty goal, but such was their ambition. Thus the invitation to the Uchiha was sent and the negotiations began. At the time the Uchiha clan was led by a young Madara Uchiha, a man as we now know would one day go on to shake the very foundations of the shinobi system. The Uchiha and in particular Madara were known to be rather reclusive and generally kept to themselves, so the initial expectations were for the negotiations to fall through. However, to the surprise of both the Uzumaki and the Hyuga, Madara accepted the offer and the Uchiha moved into Uzushiogakure as well, making it the single strongest shinobi village to have ever existed in history, even to this day. Everything was going so well at first…but unfortunately, that would not last for long."

Naruto gulped in anticipation as Nagato took a moment to drink a glass of water. Madara always remained an elusive figure in Konoha's history despite being the first Hokage. He was a man of many secrets as he was said to always keep mostly to himself and had very few, if any, close companions. To be able to learn his origin story of sorts was something that piqued Naruto's interest, especially as a Hokage himself.

"As part of the terms of the alliance, even though the Uzumaki were the official leaders of Uzushiogakure, the Uchiha held equal political power over the village as the other two founding clans. Therefore, as long as two of the three clans agreed on a specific matter in regards to the village, that would be the course of action taken by all. But as time passed, it started to become clear to the Uzumaki and Hyuga clan leaders that Madara's views on how the village should be run was fundamentally different than theirs. Madara believed that forming a hidden village such as Uzushiogakure was only a temporary solution towards peace and it wouldn't be long before other villages that were starting to form at the time would go to war against one another, creating even larger scaled conflict. Thus he suggested rapid militaristic expansion of Uzushiogakure using the combined power of the three great clans in order to conquer the lands inhabited by other clans, forcing them under Uzushiogakure's rule. In his mind this was the only way to end the age old dissention among shinobi – to unite them all under a singular ruler despite their history and clan affiliations. Under this ruler – the strongest shinobi that existed – all would be equal and there would exist no more divide. In Madara's eyes Uzushiogakure was the perfect platform to begin what he called "the war to end all wars" in order to bring true peace upon the shinobi." Nagato explained, before stopping to take another sip of water and allow all the information to be taken in by his listeners.

"Both the Uzumaki and Hyuga denied such propositions stating that such a crusade would cause even more bloodshed amongst shinobi and loss of lives. They still believed that leading by example and showing that even the strongest clans can coexist alongside one another would be the best path to peace. If any other clans were to join them, they would do so of their own will, not because they were forced into submission. These differing viewpoints between the clans only became exacerbated over time and tensions started to arise. It wasn't long before there was serious dissention between the clans that threatened to uproot the very foundation of the village. Because of this, our clan leader decided that retaining an alliance with the Uchiha was no longer possible and he requested Madara to take his clan and leave Uzushiogakure immediately. Unfortunately for him, this would turn out to be his greatest mistake. Little did he know that to Madara you were either his ally or an enemy. Either you agreed with him, or you were actively going against him. There was no middle ground. At that point, the Uzumaki clan and Uzushiogakure had become a future enemy standing in the path of his peace. Thus he initiated his plan to annihilate the opposition from its very core."

"You can't be serious…" Naruto uttered in shock, realising how this was most likely going to end.

"On one fateful night, our clan leader had to leave the village on an urgent request made by the Hyuga clan leader." Nagato's voice shook thinking about the final string of events that was told to him by his ancestors – the few Uzumaki who survived that night. "And that was when Madara enacted his plan. In the depths of the night, he and his clan initiated the most deadly arson known to shinobi. Madara's power was unmatched, and he burned down anything and everything that stood in his path...the path that led to the Uzumaki."

 **Flashback Start: Over 100 years ago**

Madara opened his eyes, fully activating his Mangekyou Sharingan, a sadistic smile creeping across his face as flames engulfed houses as far as the eyes could see. Bodies were scattered everywhere and screams of people running for their lives permeated the streets of Uzushiogakure. Madara walked towards his destination while the Uchiha clan used their fire style techniques to light up the village all around him. Anyone that dared stand in his way was swiftly dispatched with overwhelming force. No one had the power to oppose him. It was akin to suicide.

It wasn't long before Madara finally reached his goal – the Uzumaki complex. He broke down the huge front door with a swift kick and now stood in the middle of the spacious courtyard, eyeing the giant clan house that stood in front of him.

The Uzumaki gathered in large numbers, every single one of them seething in anger at Madara for destroying the village that they created with their blood, sweat and tears. Even if their leader wasn't here right now, they weren't about to let this man get away with it.

"Madara, you're going to pay for this…WITH YOUR VERY LIFE!" One of the Uzumaki screamed bloody murder.

Madara smiled cynically in response, still unphased despite being completely outnumbered. "I suppose I should show my gratitude towards all of you for gathering here in one place. Now I can take out all the trash in one go."

The Uzumaki were done talking. All they cared for at this point was Madara's blood. Unfortunately for them, Madara was no ordinary shinobi. He wielded a power so great that no amount of normal shinobi could ever hope to contend.

As the Uzumaki jumped into the fray, Madara drew his gunbai and swung the fan in a wide arc, blowing everyone away with one huge burst of wind. But within moments Madara found himself bound by a multitude of special sealing chains cast on him by the remaining Uzumaki.

"Give up! There's no escaping these chains!" One of his captors ordered.

But Madara started to laugh maniacally in response. "It would appear none of you truly grasp your insignificance. Then allow me to rectify that and teach you the meaning of despair. Witness…TRUE POWER!"

The chains holding Madara snapped into pieces as a gigantic, ethereal blue humanoid structure wielding swords in both hands took form around the Uchiha's body and towered over the Uzumaki compound. This was one of the Mangekyou Sharingan's most powerful techniques – Madara's guardian, and it was so big that it could be seen from all across the village. The Uzumaki looked in shock and awe, not knowing what to do against the behemoth that overshadowed them. They had never seen anything of this magnitude before.

"Step forth. It is time for you all to perform your final dance of death."

Those words, they would indeed by the final words heard by the majority of the Uzumaki clan. What proceeded could only be described as a massacre as Madara tore through each and every single person that stood in his way. Bodies were strewn about and the Uzumaki compound was turned into a bloodbath.

As the Uzumaki's number dwindled down in the wake of Madara's assault, the adults that were left attempted to round up the children in order to save them.

"The children. We have to at least protect the children. Take them and run…" The clan leader's wife was about to instruct the remaining adults when a sword went right through her heart and she dropped lifelessly on the spot.

The last few adults got in front of the children in order to protect them, but with one mighty swing of his guardian's blade, Madara dispatched of them all in one go. All that remained now were the Uzumaki children, who they were scarred for life at the sight that they saw. The gigantic monster that stood in front of them was far worse than any nightmare they had ever seen.

Just as Madara was about to bring an end to the children, the clan leader dropped down in between them and pushed the Uchiha back with a great burst of wind. He had returned back to the village in time to at least save the children.

"CHILDREN STAND BACK!" He ordered as he looked around the compound to see the utter destruction of his clan and his home. Tears filled his eyes at the sight of the people that he loved so much mercilessly slaughtered by the man standing in front of him. This heinous act of genocide could never be forgiven. "My clan…my people…my village…you took them all from me. I showed you benevolence. You repaid me with betrayal. Now you'll feel my wrath…MADARAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

A murderous red aura formed around the Uzumaki clan leader as his body started to rapidly absorb nature's energy, imbuing him with superhuman strength. The surge in power, exacerbated by his blinding rage started to shake the very earth itself. Madara braced himself in response. Unlike the rest of the Uzumaki clan, this man would require him to exert himself.

Thus a battle between the two titans began. The Uzumaki's best versus the Uchiha's best. Their clash spanned across the entire burning village of Uzushiogakure, much of which was now reduced to ashes. Yet each of them fought for their own ideals and beliefs. After an all-out collision of two greats in which both sides were brought to their limits, they were once again back to where they began, the destroyed Uzumaki complex. Both combatants knew that the end was nigh as they dug deep to find the last remnants of energy that was left within their bodies.

"FOBIDDEN JUTSU: DARK SEAL DESTRUCTION!"

A black portal appeared below Madara from which countless ethereal dark hands raised up and wrapped around the gargantuan humanoid structure protecting Madara, bringing it crashing into the ground before completely absorbing it, leaving the Uchiha open for a full frontal assault.

The Uzumaki leader reeled from the aftereffects and exhaustion of using such a powerful technique, but prepared himself to launch the final attack.

Madara was exhausted as well and his eyes were drained from over-assertion, yet a smile appeared on his face. "A veritable opponent…however, I've always been one step ahead!"

At that moment, just as the Uzumaki leader prepared to rush towards his sworn enemy, he felt a sharp sting through his heart as he coughed up a mouthful of blood, before dropping face first to the ground. He turned his head to see who it was that attacked from behind and the person he saw was one he never would have expected even in a million years. It was his very best friend, the Hyuga clan leader.

"Impossible! My dear friend…why would you…" Before he could say anything more, the Hyuga clan leader pulled out a sword and without any remorse dug it right through his best friend's heart – bringing about an end to the battle and assuring victory for Madara.

"And so the Uzumaki's end is finally in sight. All that remains is to erase its future." Madara's eyes were now firmly fixed on the children that were cowering in fear, traumatised by the death and destruction surrounding them. With each step that Madara took towards them, the children froze in fear with no one left to protect them.

"Not…them!" In his last dying breaths, the Uzumaki leader used the final ounce of life that was left within him to form chains that wrapped around both the Uchiha and Hyuga, binding them in place where they stood. "CHILDREN, RUN! I'LL HOLD THEM BACK AT ALL COSTS UNTIL THEN!"

Madara struggled with all his might, but he was too exhausted to break free at this point. These weren't any normal sealing chains either. They were the strongest chains created by the Uzumaki's final dying will.

The children looked at their clan leader in shock, still frozen in place from seeing him bleed out in front of their very eyes.

"Son, it is up to you now. The Uzumaki must live on. Take the rest of the children and run away from here. Live! That is my final order!"

His father's final words brought the clan leader's young son back to his senses, who was watching helplessly thus far. But now he took the rest of the children and ran away from the compound to the secret exit of the village known to only a few, trying his best to hold his tears despite the loss of his family in order to save the last remnants of his clan. He felt so powerless in not being able to do anything to save his parents, but he vowed to take the rest of his clan members to safety, for that was his father's final orders.

The Uzumaki clan leader smiled at the sight of the children running away. Even in the face of so much death and despair, oddly, he felt a sense of hope, a premonition of sorts. "Madara…today you may have succeeded in destroying Uzushiogakure…but the Uzumaki clan will live on…and one day from amongst them…there will be a successor…who shall oppose your tyranny…and bring about true peace for the shinobi. That is my belief."

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

"Thus, here we are. Madara almost singlehandedly destroyed the Uzumaki clan, but it was the Hyuga that dealt the final blow in the ultimate act of betrayal. However, despite all that, our final clan leader's wish came true. From within the ashes of our clan, you Naruto Uzumaki, his direct descendant have become the leader of the very village that Madara went on to create after destroying Uzushiogakure. Ironic, is it not?" Nagato asked with a wry smile.

Naruto had so many questions circulating through his mind right now, but before he could ask any of them, his mother cut in.

"I'm sure you have many questions right about now, but there is a reason we told you this story, and it is that reason which you need to know above all else." Kushina explained. "All the information we have gathered over the years point to one conclusion – that history is about to repeat itself. All variables are once again in place."

Naruto had a confused look on his face, not sure what his mother was insinuating.

"Naruto, you are the descendant to the Uzumaki clan leader, and just like he was the leader of Uzushiogakure, you're the leader of Konohagakure. Hinata is the descendant of the Hyuga clan leader, your closest friend and ally from within the Hyuga. Finally, after many long years of preparation, the Uchiha have crowned the successor to Madara in Sasuke. Does this situation sound familiar?" Minato asked his son and instantly Naruto realised what his parents were trying to tell him.

"Sasuke Uchiha is about to make his move in order to eliminate you and take your throne in Konoha. And he will be aided in that act by your closest allies – the Hyuga." Nagato concluded his story with that grim prediction.

* * *

I know I haven't updated in a bit with summer and all, so I tried to make this a sizeable chapter. I have been meaning to tell the backstory to the Uzumaki clan for a while now, as it's important to the overall plot involving Madara, who is in fact a key character in this story.

This time I'll leave you with this question - why do you think the Hyuga betrayed the Uzumaki? The answer may be pretty straightforward, or perhaps a bit more complicated. Regardless, I'd love to know your thoughts as always.

Now, to answer a few comments from last time:

 **unipei:** It's almost like you read the future lol. Yes, Nagato is indeed in this story, as you wanted/predicted. His role is a bit different though as you'll see.

 **SpicyWifey:** Not gonna lie. I remember reading your review on the chapter where Naruto stole Hinata's panties. I loved your suggestion of Hinata eventually finding out about the incident, and hence the little skit in the last chapter. So thank you. It was definitely a hilarious idea :)

 **ukez15:** How did Hinata's panties survive all those battles? Uhhhh...ummmm...hmmmm...*thinking intensely*...I got nothing. Maybe Naruto reinforced them with a seal? I'm making stuff up right now. Can someone else come up with a possible answer, because I'm stumped? Why are we even having a conversation about panties lol?

 **LuringMage6:** I'm glad that you liked the story so far. As you said, I do think it's important to alternate between seriousness and comedy. I always love stories that can mix in both seamlessly. So that's what I tried to do here.

 **HookedOnFics** **:** Thanks for the kind words. Unfortunately my update schedule is a bit messed up, especially in summer. But I try to update as much as I can.

That is all I have for today. I will see you all next time.


	45. The Uzumaki Family Part 3

**The Uzumaki Family Part 3**

* * *

 **Elsewhere in Amegakure…**

While Naruto was having an important conversation with Nagato and his parents, Menma was currently walking through the bustling streets of Amegakure with Boruto sitting on his shoulders, showing his nephew the village. The young boy was in awe of all the huge skyscrapers that towered all around him. He had never seen such architecture, let alone a huge ninja village such as this before, given that he lived his whole life in a much smaller village without the presence of any shinobi at all.

Menma and Boruto had gotten to know each other over the past few days as Naruto and Hinata recovered at the hospital. Given Menma's playful nature, it didn't take long for the two to hit it off and they spent a lot of time together since then. It was also Menma's way of keeping Boruto from being worried about his injured parents, so he kept him occupied. Thus the two had grown close over a pretty short period of time.

"Shouldn't you be at the meeting, onii?" Boruto asked his uncle, but due to their age difference being only about 10 years, he was more like an older brother than anything else.

"Eh, not really. I'm not big into all this political talk. It all just sounds jibberish to me. I wish everyone would just stop fighting and get along with each other, you know?"

"That's the same thing our teacher said when she was telling us about shinobi, that they're always fighting and are dangerous people."

"I guess even normal people think we're power hungry monsters. Not that I blame them. Throughout the ages, all the war and fighting among our kind has adversely affected everyone around us, especially civilians. So I can see why a lot of them wouldn't like us. But it's really sad you know. The real purpose of us shinobi is to defend the innocent, establish peace and to protect the people who may not have the power to do so. We should be fighting to bring about justice, not for more power and control. That goes against what we are supposed to be. I want to change that. So someday I hope create a group of shinobi that would be allies of justice, nightmare to evil. We would bring true peace." Menma explained his rather simple, yet lofty aspirations.

Boruto's eyes lit up in excitement. "You have to let me join! I wanna be a member of this group! I've always thought even before I knew that my parents were ninja that if I had special powers like them, I would use it to help innocent people and make the world a better place. So a group of individuals fighting for that same dream is amazing!"

"Really, that's nice to hear Boruto! Alright, in that case you can be the very first member to join. I guess that officially makes us a group then, now that there's more than one person in it. Glad to have you on board little bro."

"Oh oh, what will be the name of our group? It has to have an epic name right?"

"Of course. I've thought about that beforehand. We should call it – Super Special Awesome Warriors of Justice!" Menma revealed the name of his group with great pride.

"Wow, that name sucks. It's so childish."

"What, no! I put a lot of thought into it. And why am I getting called childish by a child?"

"I don't care. Think of something cool. Something better."

"Ahhh fine! Give me a sec to think." Menma became embroiled in deep thought for nearly a minute before suddenly being struck with inspiration. "I GOT IT! I've found the perfect name."

"What is it? Tell me."

"Akatsuki. That'll be the name of our group!" Menma announced proudly, even more so than before. This in his mind was the perfect name that described the modus operandi of their to-be faction.

"Akatsuki…as in a "new dawn" for the world. I like it! It has a perfect ring to it. This is gonna be big, I'm sure of it." Boruto appreciated the grandiose meaning of the name. "So, what do we do now? We'll have to find more members to join right? But where do we find them?"

"That's a good question, and I think I know someone already who will be willing to join us."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's goooooo!" Boruto shouted from atop Menma's shoulders

"Yeaaaaaaaah!"

The two were so occupied in their own little world that as soon as Menma started to make a dash for their next objective, he bumped head on into an incoming person and both of them unceremoniously tumbled to the ground. Boruto managed to jump off Menma's shoulders in time and landed gracefully on the ground.

"Argh my moneymaker!" Menma cried out while rubbing his backside, given that he landed directly on it. He then re-directed his attention to the person he bumped into. "I'm sorry about th-"

"Hey, watch where you're going! Are you an idiot?" The girl on the receiving end shouted in anger. "You wanna get your ass beat punk-"

Both parties stopped min-sentence as they got a glimpse of one another for the first time.

Menma's eyes nearly popped out of his sockets at the sight of the girl about the same age as him. She had dark eyes and long flowing black hair styled with a hime-cut almost identical to Hinata. In fact, her overall proportions and appearance was oddly similar to that of the Hyuga princess, the only difference being her much more aggressive temperament.

" _OHHHHH MY ME, THAT IS ONE HOT MAMA!"_ Menma screamed within his mind, almost letting it spill out into reality. But at that moment an odd sense of nostalgia washed over him as he noticed her black irises. It felt as though he had seen those eyes many times before.

While Menma was briefly lost in his thoughts, a smirk appeared on the girl's face and suddenly out of the blue she grabbed his collar and yanked him closer to her.

"W-W-W-W-What is going on?" Menma stuttered in shock.

"It seems you've turned out into a fine looking man that is just my type. You're the only one I've ever felt this way towards. Maybe I should make you mine after all, Menma." She proclaimed without any hesitation in her voice, gripping the Uzumaki's collar even harder and stopping him from being able to escape.

"Eh? EHHHHHHH!? I'm sorry…do I know you?" Menma asked in a meek tone. He was not used to any woman coming on to him this aggressively before.

Unfortunately, his response drew the ire of the girl as she shook him remorselessly by the collar, leaving Menma with stars appearing in his vision.

"DON'T TELL ME YOU'VE FORGOTTEN ABOUT ME ALREADY! AND DON'T THINK I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE LECHEROUS DOUCHEBAG YOU'VE BECOME SINCE THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU! I SWEAR IF YOU LOOK AT ANOTHER WOMAN IN A WRONG WAY, I'LL CHOP YOUR BALLS CLEAN OFF!" She spat venomously in his face while shaking him even harder. By the time she was done, there was no response from the poor Uzumaki as his head was tilted to the side and the whites of his eyes were visible. Thus she finally let go off him and allowed his limp body to crumple to the floor.

Boruto was scared out of his mind at the sight of this woman and her volatile temperament. She looked similar to his mother but with an inverted personality.

"W-Who are you?" Menma barely managed to squeak out the question from the crumpled mess of a state he was in.

"You still don't recognise me huh?" She asked, before changing her tone of voice into a soft-spoken one. "Do you remember me now, Menma-kun?"

That voice. That manner of speaking. Menma knew exactly who she was now. "HINATA!?"

"So you finally remember me?"

"You're back!? And what the heck happened to you? Especially with that attitude! You used to be so different when we were younger." Menma said in disbelief.

"I could say the same about you as well. You've gained quite the reputation as a pervert for yourself. You were so different back then as well Menma." Hinata countered back as her eyes now darted over to the blonde-haired boy that was accompanying her old friend. Instantly she glared at Menma with fire in her eyes. "Who is this kid? Don't tell me he's yours!"

"Of course not! Are you crazy? You think I had a child when I was like 10 years of age? You're the only girl I knew back then. You know that all too well."

Hinata blushed ever so lightly for a second at his comment before glaring back at him. "Good…because I would have skewered that girl otherwise."

A chill ran down Menma's spine from the comment. Something told him there was at least some level of truth to it.

"So, who is he?" She asked again, this time with a bit more curiosity than anger.

"He's my nephew. My brother and his wife are visiting us." Menma explained. "Boruto, this is an old friend of mine…Hinata. Hinata, this is Boruto."

"I-It's nice to meet you." Boruto stuttered. He was actually kind of scared of her. To think she even had the same name as his mother. The irony was overwhelming.

"It's good to see you too Boruto-kun." She replied, patting him gently on the head. "You're really cute."

Boruto blushed lightly and twiddled his index fingers together, a habit that his mother once used to have when she got nervous as a kid.

Hinata now brought back her attention towards Menma and looked him up and down. Just having her gaze upon him made Menma's heart thump out of control and he felt very uneasy. No one ever made him feel this way apart from her. Even though he was happy to see her again after several years, a large part of him just wanted to run away as quickly as possible.

"Menma, it's been a while since we last met. It looks like you've gotten a lot stronger."

"You s-seem stronger too. So w-what brought you back?" Menma was almost visibly sweating at this point. Memories of the past were starting to flood him and not all of it was exactly good. He didn't want to dwell on that past anymore.

"My training is finally complete and Amegakure has always been my true home. Plus your parents wanted to see me again. I wonder how YOU feel though." Hinata questioned quite directly. "In any case, I think a bit of a re-acquaintance is in order, don't you think?"

And that was the straw that broke the camel's back. Menma, in a state of a nervous wreck could no longer take the pressure. Thus he quickly picked up Boruto in his arms and dashed away like crazy while shouting, "MAYBE NEXT TIME! K, THANX, BYE!"

" _So he ran away. I guess I can't blame him after everything that has transpired."_ Hinata sighed in defeat, but understood Menma's plight at the same time. Her expression clouded as she was reminded of her past course of actions. _"I suppose that is to be expected. After all, it is I who chose to leave behind my dearest friend in pursuit of power that I needed to fulfil my retribution. But it matters not. The past is the past. You will be mine one way or another, Menma."_

Thus, Hinata walked away with a confident smirk on her face.

Having run quite some distance, Menma finally stopped at a quiet alleyway in order to regain his breath.

"Why did you run away? I think she likes you." Boruto said casually, not understanding what was going on.

"It's not as simple as that Boruto. She and I go a long way back. It's something complicated involving my parents."

"Complicated? Aren't you always complaining about how you can't find any woman who appreciates you?"

"That girl…she was the first and only girl that I've had actual feelings towards. But unfortunately, it just wasn't meant to be. She was a lot different back then…a lot sombre, given the loss that she suffered." Menma sighed and in one of the rare instances, let down his happy-go-lucky veil in order to speak from the heart. "I guess I can tell you this. Look Boruto, I'm not actually serious when I'm acting like an idiot around women. It's all a joke, a persona if you will that I developed a long time ago in order to try and cheer up those around me. You see, ever since I was a kid there would be a lot of times when mom and dad would be very depressed, especially around the time when your mother left your father. It was linked to my older brother. If he was happy, they would be happy. If he was sad, they would be sad as well. The two of them always carried this great burden of guilt for kind of abandoning him I guess. It made me sad because I loved them you know. I wanted to see my parents happy, so I tried to find ways to cheer them up. The whole acting like an idiot was my way of getting them to react…to not be filled with sorrow. And it kind of worked. Mom would get angry and try to beat my ass when I acted like a deviant and dad would do his best to keep her under control. In its own way, it brought life into my family. So I acted hyper in order to stop my parents from collapsing from the burden they carried in their hearts. I wasn't going to let that happen to the people I loved."

Having had a little heart to heart with his nephew, Menma stood upright and slapped himself in the face a couple of times in order to regain his usual cheerful self. "ANYWAY, I don't know why I'm telling you all this stuff. Maybe because I saw a little bit of me in you given how much you love and want to protect your mother at all cost. In any case, I want to do the same."

To Menma's surprise he found Boruto's eyes puffed up and watery with snot dripping from his nose. Suddenly out of the blue the young boy hugged one of his legs.

"Onii, I didn't realise this but you're actually pretty cool!" Boruto complimented, having found new appreciation for his family member. "Even if no one else appreciates you, I will always like you."

"Ehhh? You didn't think I was cool before? And get off me man, you're getting your snot all over my pants." Menma tried his best to pry Boruto way, but the little boy was clung to him like super glue.

But Menma appreciated the sentiment. As such, he let Boruto cling to him for a bit before setting off towards their original destination once again.

"So where were we going?" Boruto asked.

"We were on our way to recruit a new member to our group, remember? Oh and here we are." Menma stopped in front of a small yet nice looking duplex house located in a residential area a little distance away from the central hub of the village. He entered through the front lawn and rang the doorbell.

It didn't take long before a blue-haired, middle-aged lady answered the door.

"Oh Menma. Nice to see you doing well. And who do we have here with you today?" She asked in a calm yet kind tone.

"Konan-san, good to see you too. This is Boruto. He's the son of my older brother, the Hokage."

"Oh right. That's who my husband went to talk to earlier. I heard the Hokage had a young child, but it is great to make your acquaintance Boruto-kun. I'm Konan." She extended her hand and shook Boruto's. "So, what brings you two here today? I assume you're here for Yahiko."

"Indeed. I was hoping he could get to meet Boruto and they could play together for a while."

"Of course, I think that's a wonderful idea. Wait one second." Konan turned around and shouted for her son to hear, "Yahiko, you've got some friends who've come over to play."

"Eh, really? Give me a second mom." A shout came from above as the person upstairs got dressed quickly. Before long, a young orange haired boy about the same age as Boruto came flying down the stairway. "Menma! Wait, who's he?" Yahiko asked somewhat curiously. Even though he knew Menma all too well, he didn't know the other person.

"This here is Boruto. He's the son of the Hokage. And Boruto, his name is Yahiko. He's the son of the Uzumaki clan leader."

The two boys sized each other up at the same time. Even though they were kids, there was an air of competitiveness already forming around them at first sight given their parents' backgrounds.

"If it's okay, we'll be heading over to the park to play for a bit." Menma asked for Konan's permission.

"Sure. Have fun." She waved the three goodbye.

As the three walked to the park nearby, Menma explained to Yahiko about their little plan and the formation of Akatsuki.

"Akatsuki, huh? I guess the name sounds kind of cool. I don't mind joining, but…"

Boruto was a bit irked by the nonchalant tone in which Yahiko spoke about their awesome group. He was expecting him to be a bit more delighted about the invitation. "You don't sound all too excited. Maybe you shouldn't join if you think you're above us or something."

"No, I'll join. Only under one condition though. I get to be the leader." Yahiko made quite a hefty demand. "After all, a strong group needs a strong leader."

"WHAT!? Are you for real? What makes you think you should be the leader? You weren't even the first one to be invited." Boruto was now visibly getting angry.

"My dad is the Uzumaki clan leader! Just by my lineage alone I should be the leader."

"Yeah? Well my dad is the Hokage! And my mom is the daughter of the Hyuga clan leader! Given my Uzumaki and Hyuga lineage, I should be leader then!"

The situation became volatile within seconds and sparks were starting to fly. The two kids looked like they were about to jump at each other any second.

"Uh, you two…you do realise I'm the one who came up with the idea in the first place…" Menma tried to interject.

"YOU KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT!" But both kids shut him up instantly.

There was no mediating between the two anymore. Their arguments started to heat up as they brought up each other's parents' accomplishments until eventually it all came to a head. Neither of them could stand the other anymore.

"Alright, you know what? There's only one way to settle this. I challenge you to a duel!" Yahiko proclaimed out loud.

Boruto was taken aback by the demand. This was the first time anyone had actually challenged him to a proper duel as shinobi. He didn't know how to respond.

"This is how we shinobi settle our differences – through combat! This way we can see which one of us is truly fit to be the leader." A smirk now appeared on Yahiko's face. "Or are you gonna chicken out and not back up any of your claims?"

That was it. Boruto had heard enough. "YOU'RE ON!"

"Wait, you're not gonna actually fight each other are you? That could be a problem." Menma stepped in in order to defuse the situation, but the two kids glared at him.

"We're doing this!"

The kids were dead set on the matter. Menma could stop them if he wanted, but he liked the fire that burned in their eyes. He felt it would be a learning experience for them both and as such came up with a little plan.

"Alright, I'll let you two have a duel but only on the terms that I set up. Well, not that it's too complicated. First person to trip and fall loses."

"What, that's stupid!" Boruto argued.

"For once I actually agree with him." Yahiko chimed in.

"It's my way or the highway boys. You decide."

"Fine!" Both kids shouted back in response.

The three arrived at the park where the two boys stood face to face with each other, with Menma in the middle. A small crowd of children that were playing at the park had gathered, especially since a lot of them recognised Yahiko who was one of the top students at the academy. They wanted to see the spectacle.

"Alright then, this match is for one fall. On one corner we have Uzumaki Yahiko and on the other we have Uzumaki Boruto. The duel will be won when one of the competitors falls on their back or face first to the ground." Menma announced the rules for all to hear.

Boruto activated his Byakugan, and the sudden transformation of his eyes brought a chorus of "WHOA!" from the crowd as none of them had seen the renowned doujutsu in person before. Even Yahiko took a step back in apprehension.

Even though Boruto kept the Hyuga's calm disposition outwardly as he took the clan's signature battle stance by extending forward one of his palms, a confident smirk appeared within his mind.

" _I've seen my parents fight. I've seen what they are capable of. They are like forces of nature. Their power combined is unstoppable. As their son, I have the powers of two of the greatest clans combined. What can a kid like him do to stop me? I'll end this in an instant!"_ Even though this was his very first battle and he had only been learning the basics of being a shinobi for a few months, Boruto oozed with confidence. Him winning was inevitable.

"If you're ready, BEGIN!"

As soon as Boruto heard those words, he dashed towards Yahiko at full speed. He could see everything with his Byakugan. Everything.

"IT'S OVER!" Boruto shouted at the top of his lungs as he thrust his palm forward at his opponent, knowing that it would be sufficient to end the battle.

But just at the last moment, Yahiko side stepped away with grace, and with one low sweep sent Boruto tumbling face first into the ground. Just like that, the battle was over.

"Winner – Uzumaki Yahiko!" Menma announced and the crowd erupted in cheers.

"Too easy!" Yahiko made a simple comment and ran over to his friends to celebrate his victory.

Boruto was in shock of what just happened. The feeling of being outclassed. The feeling of eating dirt. The feeling of utter defeat was something so foreign to him. And he hated it.

That feeling of hate fuelled a deep anger within him unlike ever before. It was so strong in fact that Boruto felt a brief disturbance in his eyes and as he looked up at Yahiko, his eyesight was completely different somehow. However, before he could even gather what was going on, within seconds everything returned back to normal once more.

"Hey little bro, you alright?" Menma rushed over to Boruto and helped him up off the ground.

"Y-Yeah…but I lost though. So easily as well." As he regained some of his composure, Boruto was filled with the sadness of defeat.

"That is true. Your guard was wide open. You still have a lot of the basics to learn. The different between your skill levels was clearly evident. But that is to be expected though. You only learned about your shinobi origins just a few months ago. Yahiko has been training to be a shinobi for years now. I know your parents are very strong and having watched them fight, you probably felt you should be strong just like them. But you have to remember – they only got as powerful as they are through years of hard work and training. No one is strong from birth. I was hoping this little skirmish would help you appreciate that a little bit. So don't be down on yourself. With some training I'm sure you could be an amazing ninja as well."

Menma's words resonated with Boruto. It was almost as though he read his mind. Even though losing hurt, through this experience Boruto managed to learn another facet of what it meant to be a shinobi. Thus, even if reluctantly so, he picked himself back up and accepted the defeat by extending forward his hand towards Yahiko. "You won fair and square. Thanks for the good fight. I learned a lot."

Yahiko was a bit shocked to see this sign of solidarity coming from Boruto, so he accepted the handshake with gratitude. "Oh, no, the pleasure is mine. The Byakugan was really cool to see in action. I'd only ever read about it in books but to get to see it up close like that was a real treat. Thanks!"

Everyone watching gave a standing ovation at the sportsmanship between the two as tears of joy streamed down Menma's face at the sight of a new friendship being born. He was so glad.

"Just so you know, I'm gonna win next time." Boruto made an emphatic declaration.

"I don't think so." Yahiko fired back.

Sparks started to fly between the two and they looked ready to fight once again. Menma had to quickly jump in between the two in order to defuse the situation. This newly formed bond between the two Uzumaki was as much a rivalry as it was a friendship.

* * *

On the surface, this chapter may seem more on the comedic side (which it is), but there are a few important things that happened here that'll become more evident in the future. I'll leave you to guess what those were.

And yes, I've been meaning to introduce an RTN Hinata inspired character ever since I incorporated Menma into the story. Here I've made her into a separate character from the original Hinata but decided to keep her name the same for consistency. At first I was not too sure about this, but it's not really that uncommon for two people to have the same name right? That being said, I didn't introduce her just for pairing purposes. She actually has her own backstory and role to play.

That is all for today. I'd love to know your thoughts on the new characters. And I'll see you all next time.


	46. Kushina's Tale

**Kushina's Tale**

* * *

Back in the hospital, the conversation about Naruto's origin and the Uzumaki clan's untimely end continued.

"Why? Why would the Hyuga clan leader betray the Uzumaki clan leader, his best friend? That's terrible." Hinata asked, still in disbelief of the crime her ancestor had committed. "And why would the Hyuga betray Naruto-kun? My clan has known him since he was young. My father treated him as though he was his own son. Now he is his son-in-law. There's no way my father would ever betray Naruto-kun. I refuse to believe it."

"I agree with her. The old man has been looking after me for ages. He is one of the only people who defended me when the village turned on me. He would never betray me. That's impossible!"

"You're right. Hiashi won't betray you in the normal sense. Rather he'll be forced to, just as we believe Madara forced the Hyuga clan leader to betray his best friend in the past. You see Naruto, the Mangekyou Sharingan, the most advanced form of the Uchiha's Sharingan allows one to cast a very powerful genjutsu on the target. The victim is trapped within their own mind where they are tortured and made to suffer until they are completely broken and are made to submit to the caster's will. It is nigh impossible unless you're incredibly powerful to defeat an Uchiha within his or her own genjutsu world. Without someone snapping you out from the outside, there's really not much you can do. Even then the mental damage one suffers can take a long time to heal, if at all. What's worse is that while the victim is caught within the genjutsu, the user can force them to carry out their orders outside. It is almost certain that Sasuke has awakened his Mangekyou Sharingan, and he'll be targeting Hiashi very soon in order to force him on to his side. Unfortunately, I don't think Hiashi is strong enough anymore to fight back against this. He will fall once that time comes." Minato explained in a grim tone.

"Then we need to help the old man! But the Sharingan having an even stronger form, I assume the masked man who attacked me in Kumogakure was using the Mangekyou Sharingan. I don't remember hearing about Sasuke or any other Uchiha having such eyes. How did he get them? In fact, who is that masked man and what exactly does he want?" Naruto enquired.

"That masked man was Fugaku Uchiha, Sasuke's father, and he was the mastermind behind all the attacks on our family, including everything that has happened recently. We believe we've finally pieced together the true motives behind his actions."

"WHAT!? I thought it was Danzo all along. I even caught him in the act. Fugaku always appeared as one of the most sound individuals in our village and showed his allegiance to me. To think he was behind all this is…" Naruto didn't have any words to describe how shocked he was.

"Fugaku has been scheming the Uchiha's takeover of Konoha for years. He was purposefully leaking confidential information regarding Konoha to the Raikage. However, he was careful in doing so by using Danzo as his proxy. It was to set you off in the wrong lead Naruto. In the meantime, Fugaku struck a deal with the Raikage where he would give him valuable intel in return for help in usurping the current Hokage. The Raikage agreed, but we believe he never had any intentions of helping Fugaku at all. Eventually once he had gathered enough intel and the internal strife within Konoha came to a boiling point, Ay intended an all-out assault on Konoha." Minato explained. "But the Raikage didn't realise that it was in fact Fugaku who was using him all along. Because despite all his nefarious scheming, the one thing Fugaku would never allow was for Konoha to be completely destroyed. In fact, making Konoha the strongest and only ninja village in power was his ultimate goal. In accordance with Madara's will, Fugaku sought to unify all other ninja villages under the leadership of Konoha. Kumogakure was his first target and he intended to use you and your family to reach that goal, Naruto."

Naruto clenched his fist out of anger. It didn't matter to him if someone tried to manipulate him, but to use his family to get to him was something he could never accept.

"At some point Fugaku found out about you leaving Konoha on a regular basis and became suspicious. He must have followed you from the shadows and found out Hinata and Boruto's whereabouts. From how everything has turned out, he sold that information to the Raikage under the pretence of strengthening their alliance, given that the Raikage already had a hefty bounty out for Hinata ever since she defected. Ay absolutely wanted the Byakugan and once he found out about the Hokage's son also having the Hyuga bloodline, he wanted those eyes even more. On the other hand, the real reason why Fugaku gave away your family's whereabouts to the Raikage was so that Kumogakure would capture them both. This in turn would force you to make a move to rescue your family. But Fugaku knew that given Hinata is a missing nin and Boruto not even being officially recognised as a member of Konoha, you wouldn't be able to sanction any of Konoha's forces to rescue your family without serious resistance from the other higher ups in the village, not when it could potentially start an all-out war between the villages. Thus you would have no choice but to act on your own, going into the heart of the enemy territory all on your own and risking your very life in order to save your family."

Naruto gritted his teeth so hard that they nearly snapped. He couldn't believe how precisely he had fallen into Fugaku's trap. Not only did he nearly forfeit his own life, his wife and child were in a similar situation as well. "Then what? What did that man ultimately hope to accomplish through all this?"

"Fugaku planned for you to go to war against Kumogakure on your own and cripple them in the process, which is what you precisely ended up doing. But ultimately the numbers game would catch up to you and you would get killed during this operation, hopefully taking the Raikage with you. If either one of you survived, Fugaku would come in at the final moment and clean up the mess himself in his final blaze of glory, as he did."

"Final blaze of glory?" Naruto asked in both a confused and rage filled voice.

"Fugaku has been on death's door for a while now. He was afflicted with a life threatening illness that is a side effect of abusing one's Mangekyou Sharingan. He knew this and as such his final task was to take both the Hokage and Raikage with him. Given the events that have transpired, he succeeded in taking out Ay, but because of Hinata's last minute sacrifice, he was unable to get you. I don't think Fugaku anticipated us to get involved either. Your mother and I have been watching over you for a long time Naruto, and there is no way we would allow him to kill you. We would stop him at all costs. Of course, Hinata beat us to that and for that we could never show our gratitude enough." Minato gave Hinata a grateful nod for saving his son. "Regardless, Fugaku did not quite manage to finish you off and we've received news from Konoha that he is now dead. BUT…even in his dying moments, he has most likely achieved his ultimate goal in setting up his true successor."

"W-What? He's dead?"

"You know the girl from Kumogakure that is currently living in Konoha right?"

Naruto nodded. "Yes, Karui. She defected from Kumo a long time ago and ended up settling in Konoha after marrying Chouji. What about her?"

"From what we hear, she's the one who killed Fugaku. She was found on the scene with his body."

"WHAT!? NO WAY! There's no way she'd do that. I know her. She's related to one of my closest friends. I mean why would she anyway?"

"The story seems to be that she was a double agent that has been working for the Raikage all along and pretended to defect from Kumo all those years ago in order to infiltrate Konoha and leak valuable information. Her latest task was to kill a key target in Fugaku within Konoha, and she was caught in the act." Minato elaborated the recent happenings in Konoha. "Or at least that is the story being perpetrated by the Uchiha. The reality is very different. From our understanding, we believe that the one who killed Fugaku is Sasuke himself."

Naruto's eyes widened even further in disbelief.

"He killed…his own father?" Hinata asked the question that Naruto wanted to right now.

"This is not surprising. The key to activating the Mangekyou Sharingan is to suffer through a severe mental trauma. And one way to do so is to lose a precious family member, by your own hands nonetheless. Fugaku planned for Sasuke to kill him in order to activate his MS and use a genjutsu on the girl from Kumo to make it seem as though she is the one who killed him. This way the entire Uchiha clan will unite with Sasuke as he appeals to the village for revenge against Kumogakure. You, the Hokage have already went ahead and crippled Kumogakure in the first place. You're currently missing as well, possibly even dead. The Raikage is also dead. This opens up the floodgates for the rest of Konoha to launch an all-out assault on Kumo for revenge. It's all going according to Fugaku's plans."

"I need to head back to Konoha now. This is a far greater mess than I even imagined." Naruto got up from his seat, but his parents waved for him to sit down.

"Wait Naruto, you can't go to Konoha right now, not in your current state." Kushina pleaded her case.

"Your mother's right. You would be falling into the Uchiha's trap. I'm sure Sasuke is expecting you right now and it is likely that an internal fight would break out within the village. Fugaku's plan was to always to kill you in order to set up Sasuke as the next most obvious candidate to become the Hokage and lead the fight against Kumogakure. So Sasuke will do his best to eliminate you at all cost. Your life is in serious danger right now. It also doesn't help that a lot of people are outraged at the fact that the Hokage launched a frontal assault on Kumogakure on his own without informing a single person. And you were just been elected as the Hokage only recently. Such a reckless act has severely damaged the support you have within the village. A lot of people will side with Sasuke and the Uchiha's cause right now, who have built up a reputation as heroes of Konoha over the years. The situation is very volatile within the village."

"Then what the heck am I supposed to do? Wait here as Sasuke and the rest of the village go to war with Kumo? That is not something I can allow under my watch. As the Hokage I pledged to bring an era of peace for Konoha and create alliances with other villages, not go to war with them. I don't want Konoha to force their way into others' homes and take it by force. I CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN!"

"I understand that, but if a fight does break out you won't be able to do much in your current state. You won't be able to fulfil any of your visions if you're dead. The best course of action right now will be to recover a bit first and scout the situation to intercept at the right time. We're keeping a close eye on the developments within Konoha and right now things haven't escalated to a boiling point yet. So please, calm down, recover, and then let's come up with a plan to bring an end to this mess." Minato pleaded his case.

"Naruto-kun, your parents are right. You just came out of a gruelling battle and have started on the path to recovery. You must act with a calm and rational mind, one that is fitting of the Hokage."

Upon hearing both his parents and wife's pleas, Naruto regained his cool a bit and sat down again. "Fine, I'll wait for a bit, but as soon as I'm fully functional again, I'm heading to Konoha. You must keep me updated on the situation there as well. If things start to go too far south, I'm headed to the village. I'm the Hokage after all."

"Understood." Minato breathed a sigh of relief.

The intensity within the room dropped a bit, allowing for everyone to relax ever so slightly.

"So, you never told me what happened to the two of you. How did you survive?" Naruto asked his parents with an inquisitive look.

"Indeed. Now would be the perfect time to tell you about us. Everything that is happening at present is related to the past after all." Minato looked at his wife and nodded at her. "Why don't you start Kushina? It all begun with you after all."

Kushina nodded back and recalled the events of many years past. "Naruto, remember the story of the Uzumaki's destruction and only the children of our clan surviving as a result of the sacrifice of our final clan leader? That clan leader's son guided the rest of the children out of the village and eventually to Amegakure, where the Uzumaki clan found refuge ever since. Even though the rest of the Uzumaki has lived in this village since and expanded, the clan leader's son ended up leaving the village in order to go out on his own journey and discover a new purpose in his life after losing nearly everything. I, and in extension you, are both descendants of the clan leader's son. Because he chose to move away from Amegakure so long ago, my parents did not have many ties left with this village. I don't much about my parents. When I was of a very young age, they were killed in the crossfire of a conflict involving Konoha and some other village. I was too young to remember this, but apparently Jiraiya-sama feeling guilty about Konoha's involvement in my parent's death decided to bring me into the village and gave me a new home. So I grew up in the village, not knowing anything about the history between the Uchiha and the Uzumaki that would come to haunt me later on. Eventually I met your dad. We ended up marrying and started a little family together. It didn't take long before I was expecting you, our very first child. We were truly ecstatic. Our family would finally be expanding."

Naruto could see his mother's eyes almost glow with joy. Her elation was palpable. So far it almost felt like a repeat of his own story, of how he was all alone before marrying Hinata and how they too were overjoyed when they discovered the arrival of Boruto. But just as with his parents, it wasn't meant to be. And this was reflected in the joy within Kushina's eyes clouding up as she recalled the next part of her story.

"Not long after you were born, your father and I planned a family trip to the ruins of Uzushiogakure. It may seem a bit odd but the two of us visited there a lot. Your father became interested in that place ever since he learned about it, and I knew this much that I was an Uzumaki. So it kind of connected to me in a way. Not to mention, there were many secrets that were still left in the village to be discovered. A lot of your father's special sealing techniques were ones he discovered and learned from looking through the ruins of the Uzumaki clan. So we loved visiting the Land of Whirlpools, as the island itself held up pretty well despite the village of Uzushiogakure not existing any longer. It was meant to be a little family getaway given that as a baby you loved it whenever we took you out. Little did we know, this trip would change our lives forever."

Minato looked at his wife and knew how painful it was for her to recall the events of that day. Thus he decided to chime in a bit for her. "The three of us had just arrived on the island and were on our way to Uzushiogakure when out of nowhere we were ambushed by a group of shinobi. Worst of all, one of them was a highly notorious and wanted criminal in the bingo book – a man named Kakuzu. He was renowned to be able to wipe out any target as long as the price was right. It appeared that a hit was placed on me by someone. But that wasn't so surprising. At the time I had become quite notorious myself as Konoha's Yellow Flash. It wasn't completely out of the picture that some other village would want me erased. I could handle a threat like that. But I had to ensure that you and your mother were safe. So I created an opportunity for Kushina and asked her to flee the scene while I distracted the enemy, hoping to take care of the threat by myself from there. Even though Kushina was hesitant at first, I assured her that I'd be alright and asked for her to keep you safe. I thought I made the right choice. I was wrong; so very wrong. What I did not anticipate at the time was that I was never the real target and it was someone from Konoha who was behind it all. This was only a ploy to distract me and to separate you and your mother from me. I fell right into the trap."

It was a decision that Minato regretted for many years in his life as it led directly to his wife's death, or at least so he thought at the time. It still haunted him to this day.

Kushina decided to pick back up where Minato stopped at this point. "Even though I was worried about your father, I ran with you as far as I could from the battlefield. As your mother, it was my job to protect my new born child at all cost. I had reached a cliff at the absolute edge of the island, which was surrounded on all sides by whirlpools, giving it its namesake of the "Land of Whirlpools". There was nowhere else for me to run and I thought I was finally safe. But that is when I realised I was completely wrong, as HE finally arrived for the very first time, the one who would make our lives a living nightmare."

"Fugaku…" Naruto whispered to his own horror. He knew this wasn't going to end well.

"He appeared as a masked man, concealing his identity. Yet his intentions were all too clear. He wanted to eradicate the last of the Uzumaki. I had nowhere to run. I had no choice left but to fight, if not for myself, but to protect my child. However, the enemy I faced was far too strong. It didn't take long before I was completely overwhelmed. The situation was dire. At my weakest moment, the masked man drew his sword and went right for you, Naruto."

 **Flashback: 27 years ago**

Fugaku lunged with his sword in order to put an end to baby Naruto and cut down the Uzumaki's very root. Yet, before his sword could reach its target, it dug into someone else. In her final effort to protect her child, a broken Kushina interjected her body in between her baby and his intended murderer.

The sword went right through her mid-section, creating a bloody mess. She knew she couldn't win. She knew that her death was imminent. But her only concern at that moment was to protect Naruto and she would achieve that final goal at all costs. Thus she used this opportunity where the enemy had let his guard down thinking it was already over to suddenly grab his hand that held the sword, causing a plethora of ethereal white chains to tear open from the ground below and wrap around his body, pinning him in place.

 _"What's this!? I can't move, not even using my eyes!"_ Fugaku tried his best using both his physical and ocular powers in order to break free, but to no avail. Even his Mangekyou Sharingan's special ability, which allowed for him to teleport freely to any location that his eyes had previously seen and committed to memory, could not break him free of this sealing technique. These were chains that bound one to space and time. Given his young age and inexperience with his newly awakened eyes, Fugaku could not do much to free himself.

Kushina created a shadow clone of herself while holding the enemy in place. She could only keep the seal active briefly and given the clone's terrible condition, a reflection of the original, all it could do was pick up Naruto and run with all its might. There was very little time. Kushina would use the last remnants of her power to temporarily bind the enemy and have her shadow clone deliver her child to Minato. In this way, her sacrifice would not be in vain. Even though pain spread through her entire body and she felt as though her consciousness would fade at any point, she would hold on to the bitter end, at least until the safely of her baby was ensured.

Kushina desperately held on for as long as she could to buy her clone some time, but she had pushed herself beyond her limit at this point. She just couldn't keep up for long against the enemy's resistance. As soon as her sealing technique dissipated, the masked man pulled out his sword from within her and grabbed her by the throat, holding her over the edge of the cliff. The whirlpools roared far below, ready to swallow its next victim whole.

"How fitting that an Uzumaki's end comes within the depths of the whirlpools that their land was so infamous for. It was once said that anything that falls into the whirlpools of Uzushiogakure is never to be found again, as though they disappear from existence. It is now your turn to become their next victim." The masked man said his final words in an ominous tone as he let go of his grip around his target's throat. "Farewell!"

Kushina's body plummeted through the air towards the whirlpools below. Even though she knew that these were her final moments, there was a feeling of serenity within as the memories of her clone flowed back into her. The clone managed to deliver Naruto to Minato and he gave her his word that he would protect their child and keep him safe. That is all she needed to know. Even if she couldn't be there for her baby, she managed to protect his life. Thus, her sacrifice had its meaning.

There was a huge splash and Kushina disappeared into the abyss below. It was her end.

Or so she thought.

Kushina opened her eyes after what felt like the longest sleep of her life to someone shaking. Her body was hurting all over and her vision was blurred, but she could feel the presence of two individuals beside her. As her vision became clearer she could start to make out their features – a frail young man in his late twenties with red hair and a similarly aged woman with striking blue hair with a paper flower embedded within.

"W-Where am I? Is this the afterlife? Am I about to be judged?"

The other two looked confused at the questions, but helped Kushina sit up in position.

"Not quite the life after death I was expecting."

"I'm not sure what you're speaking of but this isn't the afterlife and you're not dead. We're at the Land of Whirlpools, very close to the ruined city of Uzushiogakure. As an Uzumaki myself, I visit this place often in order to explore the remnants of our lost city for valuable information of the past. Judging by your looks, it would appear that you're an Uzumaki yourself. Could you please tell us your name?" Nagato asked curiously.

"I'm Kushina Uzumaki…wait…this is the Land of Whirlpools? The last thing I remember is being thrown off a cliff and being swallowed up by the whirlpools. How am I here? What is going on?"

The two individuals beside her shared a glance between each other as though they had just seen a ghost.

"Kushina Uzumaki? That's impossible!" Nagato exclaimed in shock. "You are supposed to be dead."

"That's what I thought as well." Kushina agreed in response.

"But that's not the biggest issue here. You were supposed to be dead 7 years ago. Yet you're here now. Do you remember where you were for the past 7 years?"

"I'VE BEEN DEAD FOR 7 YEARS!? WHAT!?" Kushina was literally lost for words at the revelation.

"Judging by your words, you do not seem to have any clue. You said that you had fallen into the whirlpools beneath the island. There have been legends passed on through our clan that something mysterious lies within the depths of those whirlpools and those who have fallen into them in the past have never returned. Yet you're here right now, almost seemingly lost in time. This is quite confusing. Regardless, even though I'd like to investigate, there are more taxing matters at hand now that you're alive. If you truly are Kushina Uzumaki, then you are a descendant of our final clan leader. Your family is currently in great peril."

"What about my family? What's going on?" Kushina threw aside all of her concerns about herself and focused on her family.

"We suspect that the same enemy that tried to kill you is scheming to do the same to your husband and son. A great battle has broken out between Konohagakure and Kumogakure. Minato Namikaze, the one who is next in line to become the Hokage is about to head into that battle himself. This is not good. At this rate he is going to be met with the same fate as you once were by an enemy from within. The same will eventually be the case for your son."

"What!? NO! I can't let that happen. Where is Minato? I need to get to him right now!"

"Please calm down first. We can help you save your family. It is of utmost importance to us as well that the Uzumaki clan leader's descendants are not completely wiped out by our enemies. For now you must get treated. Then we can come up with a plan of action."

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

"That is how I met Nagato, and soon the remnants of the Uzumaki clan here in Amegakure. This is also where your father's side of the story comes in, as it wasn't long before I would be reunited with him as well." Kushina finished her story.

Naruto was awestruck at the many twists and turns involved. "Wait…so you just disappeared for 7 years? How is that possible?"

"We've been wondering that ourselves for a very long time but haven't had much success in deciphering this mystery." Nagato interjected. "There are many legends surrounding the whirlpools of Uzushiogakure. A few old children's tales passed through our clan talk of some being residing within, while others mention a link to another world. But these are most likely stories that were made up to deter children from wandering too close to the whirlpools and inadvertently falling in. However, we were able to discover some records within the village ruins of the whirlpools not being a natural phenomenon and something different altogether. Unfortunately most of those records were destroyed completely, so the story still largely remains a mystery."

This was proving a bit much to take in for Naruto. But one thing was certain – he had a newfound admiration for his mother after hearing of her selfless sacrifice. The way she told the story conveyed clearly that she had no regret or hesitation in throwing away her life in exchange for his. In fact she was just glad that her son was safe even in her final moments. Now that he was a parent himself, Naruto could understand the true depth of those feelings. They pulled at his heartstrings. He was grateful to say the least, and it began to overcome the feelings of resentment he felt for being left alone in Konoha. After all, if not for his mother he wouldn't even be alive right now.

Naruto was broken out of his trance by Hinata, who was currently bawling her eyes out almost like a little child. He had not seen her cry this badly in a long time. She could barely hold her own. "H-Hinata?"

"What's the matter dear? Why are you crying?" Kushina asked out of surprise.

"It's just that…how you so selflessly sacrificed yourself…all for the sake of Naruto-kun…without a hint of hesitation…it was all just too much for me. It was too painful to hear of a mother parting with her child like that. I'm sorry." She barely managed to utter those words while wiping away her tears, which only kept overflowing.

"What are you talking about Hinata? You yourself were prepared to make just as great a sacrifice for your own child. All those years ago when running away from Konoha, you were also faced with the masked man and you stood your ground to fight for Boruto; to keep him safe at any cost. When I met you back then, I could see within your eyes the absolute resolve to face anything and everything – even death – to ensure your child's safety. There was not an ounce of hesitation within you. It reminded me so much of myself." Kushina explained to Hinata with a smile. "Do you remember my final words to you back then? I entrusted you to carry forward the Uzumaki's legacy, because I knew from my own experience that you above everyone else would take care of it with your very life. Even though we never met, we were kindred spirits all along."

"MOTHER!" Hinata could no longer hold herself back and grasped Kushina in the tightest of hugs. This woman, she knew exactly what she had went through in her life for the sake of her child. Kushina hugged her back and rubbed the back of her head ever so gently.

Hinata did not remember too much about her mother, but she felt that if her mother was still here she would hug her just like this in order to comfort her at times of hardship. Kushina on the other hand never knew what it meant to have a daughter, but this feeling of mutual understanding bound them together. Hinata just understood stood her on a greater level. Even though they only met a few times in their lives, they both shared a deep appreciation for one another.

Naruto couldn't help but smile at the bonds of kinship in display in front of him. It warmed his heart. Perhaps, things weren't as cruel as he first envisioned. He now wanted to know the rest of his parent's story even more.

* * *

Wow, I can't believe it's been about 2 months since I last updated the story. That's the longest break I've taken between chapters thus far. I've had to do quite a bit of travelling due to work, so I've not had the chance to write too much. Regardless, I'm now back home and ready to continue on with the story.

On the positive side, I've pretty much charted out exactly how the rest of this story will pan out. There will be about 6-7 more chapters that will bring about the end to the story of Naruto and Hinata's reunion. After that there will be about 4-5 more chapters that will look into the future and round up some loose threads. My aim is to try to get to the end of Naruto and Hinata's story by the end of this year and this fic's second anniversary.

That being said, I am confident in saying this - you will be surprised by where this all ends up. You know, because I love twists and turns :)

Right, now that I've done some updating on the story in general, a little note on this chapter in particular. I wanted to keep Kushina's disappearance a bit of a mystery as it will come to light at a later point. As always, I'd love to know your thoughts in general. They're always fun to read and very informative. Hope we can get back on board with the story once again. Until next time - take care!


	47. Minato's Tale

**Minato's Tale**

* * *

"Naruto, do you recall 20 years ago when I left for the battle against Kumogakure?" Minato asked in a saddened tone, given that it was the last time he interacted with his son in his childhood.

"Of course, how could I forget? My life wasn't the same afterwards. What exactly happened back then? I've heard second hand stories from others but all of them were impossible for me to believe. They all branded you as a traitor saying that you turned your back against Konoha. I refuse to accept that even to this day, because you above anyone else were the most loyal to Konoha."

"It was all a set up. The whole conflict with Kumogakure began with Rin being held hostage by the Kumogakure shinobi and Obito rushing off headlong in order to rescue her. You couldn't really blame him though – it's only natural for a husband to want to save his wife when her life is in danger. I went after him as fast as I could but by the time I got there, it was already too late. What I witnessed at my arrival shocked me to my core. Rin was already dead and so were the people that held her captive. Obito had finished off every single one of them as he awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan as a result of his great loss. The only problem – the people he slaughtered were all Konoha shinobi."

"WHAT!?" Naruto wanted to say he was shocked, but after everything he had heard thus far, he was almost desensitized at this point.

"As other Konoha shinobi started to arrive on the site of the massacre, who had no idea of the cause of Rin's death, Obito was instantly labelled a traitor for massacring his own people. Right then and there, he became a priority target and was to be executed without prejudice. It didn't help that Obito had nearly lost his mind at that point. All he could think about was getting revenge against his own village. He attacked them with full force and a blood bath ensued." Minato shuddered thinking back to the events that transpired that day. "I was the only one who knew the truth and believed him. Even in his fit of rage and madness, Obito had shared that truth with me. Now he stood all alone against his own people, his own village, who wanted him dead. I knew what it felt to lose the love of your life. The pain and sorrow were unbearable. I couldn't just stand by and watch by beloved student get murdered like this. Therefore, I stepped in and tried to stop the fighting. But it was to no avail. My words would not reach anyone. All the Konoha shinobi did not trust Obito and wanted him dead for killing their comrades in cold blood, while Obito wanted revenge against them for what happened to Rin. In the heat of that moment I had to pick a side, because Kumogakure were also approaching. And so I did pick a side. I decided to protect Obito, who was left all alone in this world. My words wouldn't reach them, so I had no choice but to use force in order to bring matters to a close."

"I see now…so that's why you too were labelled a traitor as well."

"It was a terrible situation. Obito was out of control and no one from Konoha was willing to listen. While this was happening, Kumogakure also joined into the fray. I tried to stand my ground and help Konoha in the fight against Kumo, but at this point Konoha had turned against me as well for protecting and potentially colluding with a traitor. So me and Obito were fighting a battle of two fronts – both Konoha and Kumo at the same time. It was only so long that we could keep up. There were just too many people to contend with. At the moment when we were reaching the absolute limits of our endurance, we were suddenly teleported out from the battlefield to a place away from the conflict. At first I didn't know what was going on. I was slightly relieved even. But it was only about to get worse from here, for the person that stood before us was the masked man, the same person who tried to kill your mother. Fugaku appeared once more, and as you may have guessed, he was once again the mastermind behind our current predicament."

"Not him again! It's like his only purpose was to make our lives as miserable as possible!" Naruto was beyond frustrated at this point. But even if he wanted some payback, Fugaku wasn't even alive anymore for that to happen. "I can see why he wanted you out of the picture, but what did he want with Obito? Wasn't he part of the Uchiha clan as well?"

"I wondered the same thing back then, and it all became clear through my encounter with the masked man.."

 **Flashback Start: 20 years ago**

The masked man stood some distance away from Obito and Minato, his eyes fixated on Obito's newly transformed eyes.

"Yes…how beautiful they are…the Mangekyou Sharingan. You could count on one hand the Uchiha that were able to awaken those eyes. One needs to be truly gifted indeed to even have the potential to unlock them. I wasn't wrong in my prediction that you were one of the very few with that potential. Setting up this entire conflict with Kumo, this experiment, all of it was a success after all."

"Experiment?" Obito questioned, not realising what was happening.

"Those eyes of yours, they can only be awakened when an Uchiha suffers through a pain beyond anything they could ever imagine. You were one of the special few in our clan's history that had the potential to awaken those eyes. That is why I set it up such that you would see the demise of the girl that you held so dear in front of your very eyes, triggering the Mangekyou Sharingan. And it worked wonders. A small price to pay for such an awe-inspiring power, is it not? Now then, I give you a chance Obito. Join me and I shall teach you what it means to hold ultimate power. Together we can bring the Uchiha back to its lost glory."

"Join you? No…I'm gonna KILL YOU!" Obito rushed towards the masked man with only bloodlust in his eyes. He would ensure that this man would not walk the earth for much longer for the atrocity he had committed. But just as Obito was in striking range, the masked man vanished like an apparition from his sight. "WHERE DID HE…!"

Before Obito could even react, he was shoved to the ground from behind. He turned around and given his inexperience concerning the Mangekyou Sharingan, made the mistake of looking directly into his enemy's eyes, thus becoming frozen in place by a powerful genjutsu. After all, the masked man wielded the same eyes as his own, but was much more adept with their capabilities. "Naïve child. The Uchiha clan was built on sacrifices. The loss you've suffered this day is a necessity for a better future. You were gifted with the potential to awaken those eyes, yet you do not understand your greater purpose. But it matters not! I did not expect you to understand. All I need from you are your eyes, even if I have to pry them out by force."

Fugaku swung his sword in a wide arc, but at the very last second Minato pushed Obito out of the way and snapped him out of the genjutsu, taking the full brunt of the attack that slashed him deep across both eyes, blinding him on the spot.

Minato clutched his eyes with both hands as he bled profusely and out of control. He had lost his vision completely and could no longer see his enemy's movements.

"I was going to deal with you in just a bit, Minato Namikaze, but now is as good a time as ever!" The masked man capitalised on a staggered Minato and thrust his sword forward with full force, hoping to put an end to him once and for all.

Seeing his teacher in such a predicament, who had sacrificed everything for him thus far brought Obito somewhat back to his senses. He wanted desperately to help him. He could not let yet another one of his beloved people die in front of him. That intense feeling translated into a new power unlocking within his eyes. Obito could feel his eyes connecting to a world beyond, and using them he opened up a portal to a different dimension right in front of him. He entered that portal without a second thought and in a split second exited out of another portal right between his teacher and the masked man. Obito took the full brunt of the masked man's attack in his master's stead this time – the sword going right through Obito's heart.

Obito realised at that dire moment that it might be possible for him to use his newfound powers to be rid of his adversary. Thus he focused his Mangekyou Sharingan directly on the masked man with every last ounce of strength he could muster to throw the unknown Uchiha into the alternate dimension that Obito's eyes just connected to.

Thus the scourge of the masked man ended, but at a great cost. Obito dropped to the ground, his life fading away rapidly.

"OBITO NO!" Minato realised what had just happened – he could sense his student teetering at the edge of life and death. "WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS!?"

"I'm sorry for dragging you into this mess with me sensei. Even though I nearly lost my sanity and attacked you…even after I turned the entire village against me…you never left my side…for that I am truly grateful. This is all I could do to repay you. Please forgive me…"

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about Obito. You're my precious student. I should be the one apologising for allowing all of this to happen…to Rin and to you. Please forgive me Obito!"

"It's okay sensei. But I have one final request for you…if you would indulge in my selfishness one last time."

"Anything Obito. Anything I can do for you, I will."

"Sensei, take my eyes. Use them as your own. Do not let that man get hold of these eyes. Become the Uchiha's ghost! This way…a small part of me will be able to live on…through you…" Obito took his teacher's hand and placed it on top of his eyes. With that final gesture, his life faded away.

"Obito…nooo!" The pain Minato felt was excruciating, for he had just lost yet another one of his precious people. He wished he could cry, but he didn't even have the ability to do that anymore. Blood dripped down from his eyes in place of tears. Despite the pain, Minato fulfilled his student's final request by extracting his eyes, then sealed and transmitted them to a safe place where the masked man would not be able to find them.

But suddenly Minato felt a sharp pain across the back of his head that made him fall to the ground unconscious.

"You didn't think you'd be able to get rid of me that easily, did you?"

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

"And so, Obito gave up his life in order to save mine that day. If not for him I wouldn't even be here right now." Minato even to this day could not repay the debt he owed to his student and was ever grateful to him for his sacrifice. "But the masked man had taken me captive in a hideout somewhere far away from Konoha in the Land of Fire. He wanted Obito's eyes and that is why he kept me alive, in order to extract that information from me. Unfortunately for him, I did not have my eyesight anymore, so he couldn't place me under a genjutsu. Instead he tried more conventional means of interrogation. But I wasn't going to break. I would never let my student's final request go unfulfilled. No matter the pain, I would not let his sacrifice be in vain. That is why I endured, to the enemy's frustration. No matter how much he tried, he could not get the information out of me. My endurance paid off because someone had discovered the Uchiha's hideout. This left Fugaku no choice but to act in haste. He couldn't let the secrets of the hideout he discovered. Thus in a panicked state, he decided to give up on the eyes and burn the hideout, along with me, into the ground. He lit up the entire place with his eyes' black flames before escaping, assuming that no one would be able to stop those flames from burning away everything within the hideout without trace. Except, what he did not anticipate was that it was actually your mother and the rest of the Uzumaki who came searching for me in that place. They were able to use one of the Uzumaki's sealing techniques to seal away the flames and rescue me from the depths of the hideout. And that is when I was reunited with your mother."

"We were lucky to be able to get to your father in time and that Fugaku did not outright kill him. Because of that we were able to bring him back to Amegakure and transplant Obito's eyes into him. Eventually he was able to recover and regain his vision once more."

All of this was so much to take in for Naruto that he didn't know how to respond. To think his parents survived so many calamities was like a miracle in and onto itself. "I'm glad that you both survived. I truly am. But did neither of you think about me and how I was doing in the midst of it all?"

"Of course we did Naruto. In fact, you were at the centre of our concerns." Kushina replied wholeheartedly.

"After I recovered and learned from the Uzumaki the history of the Uchiha and what they were planning in regards to Konoha, I couldn't simply stay put. Above all, your safety was my main focus." Minato explained. "So I returned to Konoha and met with Jiraiya-sensei in secret. He was the only person in the village that knew I was still alive. At first he was shocked to find out what had truly transpired, because Fugaku told a very different story to the village, that it was primarily because of the Uchiha's effort that Konoha was safe and that I had betrayed them, hence being killed as a result. The general populace considered the Uchiha as the heroes of Konoha. On the flip side, a large number of shinobi present at the battle saw me side with Obito. There was no way they would believe my story, even if the Hokage supported me. If anything, it would only weaken Jiraiya-sensei's standing as the Hokage and potentially destabilise his authority over the village. That is something we could not afford to risk at the time given that Fugaku was slowly manipulating his way in bringing the Uchiha to power. Therefore I remained undercover in order to help Jiraiya-sensei protect Konoha from the shadows, and most importantly to counter Fugaku's plans."

"What? You were working for Konoha all along? How come you never came to see me?" Naruto questioned out of both curiosity and exasperation.

"I did. I was always around you Naruto. I was always watching over you from the shadows, but I could not risk the enemy finding out about my existence at any cost. With the help of one of the Uzumaki's seals that your mother placed upon you that allowed me to sense those around you, and also the ability of Obito's Mangekyou Sharingan to teleport anywhere at will, I was always able to make sure that you were safe. Not to mention, Jiraiya-sensei assigned ANBU units to watch over you whenever you were alone, until you were old enough to protect yourself. On top of this, as you already know, Hiashi himself kept you under the Hyuga's watchful eyes and was the one who requested the Hokage to assign ANBU support from members of his own clan to keep you safe. Even though he didn't know I was alive, he did everything in his power to ensure your wellbeing. If not for the disinterest that you showed in living with the Hyuga, he was ready to adopt you as part of his clan. In essence, there were a lot of people that were watching over you Naruto. I would visit you often with your mother when you were asleep. We would clean up the house and leave food for you to eat. There were even days where without you even knowing it, I would place a very weak genjutsu on you during the day so that I could meet you in your dreams. I don't know if you remember that."

Naruto remembered. He remembered quite clearly how he would have very vivid dreams of meeting his father. They seemed so real in fact that when he woke up, it was very difficult for him to believe that it was all a dream. After hearing his father's explanation, it all started to make sense. The warmth that he felt around the house; the sweet dreams that he had; the delicious food that was always there for him when he woke up – it was all thanks to his parents. Yet all of this just brought about one question in his mind that he simply could not find an answer to.

"Why? If you were always around me and watching over me, why didn't you just take me with you away from Konoha? Why go through all this trouble, yet still keep me in the village?"

Minato looked down at the ground in order to avert eye contact with his son. This was definitely going to be the hardest question to answer. "I was the one who made the choice to keep you in Konoha. Your mother and I had a lot of heated arguments over this and there were many instances where I considered taking you away from Konoha when you would face hardships from the villagers. Yet I knew that you were special Naruto. Ever since you were a little child, you demonstrated potential unlike any other. But above all, you had the will to never give up, and no matter how difficult the challenges that you were faced with, you pushed forward relentlessly and only kept getting stronger as a result. Every time I thought it was time to bring you with us, you only demonstrated your undying will of fire, one that embodied the very essence of what Konoha stood for. After watching you persevere on your own like that and learning to stand on your own two feet no matter the odds, I truly believed that you could one day surpass even me and become an invaluable asset to Konoha, changing it for the better. That is why I made the incredibly difficult decision to keep you in the village and support you from the shadows. Luckily there were others who felt the same way as me and decided to side with you – Jiraiya-sensei, Iruka and Hiashi, among your other closest allies. But perhaps most importantly – Hinata. Even if I wasn't standing directly by your side, you weren't all alone. You still had your precious people who you had developed your own bonds with. You started to change the village's perception of you, despite the previous prejudices left behind by me. It was a difficult decision, and a very selfish one at that. Just as Fugaku prepared his next successor in Sasuke, I did the same with you, and you surpassed my expectations in every way, even becoming the Hokage. I waited many years, fighting the enemy from the shadows and biding for the perfect time for us to come face to face again. Finally, I believe now is that time. I don't expect you to forgive me Naruto, because I placed a burden upon you that no parent should ever do to their child. But I loved Konoha just as I loved you and I believed that you could do far more for it than I ever could. So even if you can't forgive me, at the very least let us put an end to the scourge that threatens the peace of the village that you are now the leader of. That way I can rest assured that Konoha will be in the right hands – in your capable hands."

"I'm sorry too Naruto. As your mother, I only ever supported you from the shadows when I should have kept you close to me. I was adamant about bringing you with me, but ultimately I couldn't deny Minato's will in the end after seeing you work so hard. It was because your father remained undercover and tracked the Uchiha's actions that we were able to thwart so many of the enemy's plans, even save Hinata and Boruto when she was running away from Konoha. And now after all these years, we were also able to come to your aid in the battle against Kumogakure. I can understand our actions being unforgivable to you, but no matter your choice, we will continue watching over you as your parents and helping you as best we can."

There were far too many emotions that were going through Naruto right now after hearing his parents' stories and the decisions they made in regards to him. But at this moment, there was something more important than his own personal feelings that he needed to address. "So how do you intend to finally stop the Uchiha? It seems like you've been tracking them for a long time. How do we stop Konoha from having the same fate as Uzushiogakure?"

Minato was a little surprised by the inquiry as he was expecting to get chewed out by his son. But he was glad to see that Naruto was taking responsibility of his role as Hokage. "This time it will be different, because we have someone within the Uchiha that has been helping us all along. You know him quite well – Itachi Uchiha."

"Itachi? What?" Naruto questioned out of surprise.

"Not only is he one of the strongest shinobi Konoha has ever seen, he has also been a spy from within the Uchiha that worked directly for the Hokage, and by proxy me. His loyalty to the village is unparalled and he has been helping us keep his own clan in check for a very long time. There is a reason why the two of you, Naruto and Hinata, were placed in the same team as Itachi. I was the one who asked Jiraiya-sensei to create that team, as I saw in the three of you the potential of re-forming the legendary alliance between the Uzumaki, Hyuga and Uchiha that became shattered in Uzushiogakure. If the three of you were to join forces again, you can overcome any obstacle that stands in your way. Itachi will certainly lend you his assistance for the betterment of Konoha, even if that means going against his own clan. Of course, we'll be there to help as well. I now wield the Uchiha's eyes after all."

Naruto glanced at Hinata for a second before lowering his head and entering into deep thought. It had been so many years since the three of them last stood side by side. He did know that with their powers combined, there was never anything they couldn't achieve. But would it be enough this time? Would it all be the same as their past?

Naruto got up, picked up his beaten up jacket from the bedside and started walking towards the door. "I need some time to think and make sense out of all this. Leave me alone for a bit. I'll call you once I've put things into perspective."

With that, he exited the room without a single more word.

"Would you two please take care of Boruto for a bit more? I need to go after him and talk things out." Hinata requested.

"Of course. Sorry for all the trouble Hinata." Kushina replied remorsefully.

"Please, there is no need for apologies. I'll do my best to settle matters with Naruto-kun, I promise." Thus with a gentle smile, Hinata also left the room and rushed after Naruto.

* * *

That marks to end of Minato and Kushina's stories. Next few chapters will focus on Naruto and Hinata, and the re-kindling of their relationship, before the final stretch. They should be a little more lighthearted and romance heavy, which is something that is finally possible given that they are back together.

So I leave you all with a simple question this time - Do you think Naruto should forgive his parents in light of everything that happened?

I'd love to know your thoughts as always and I'll see you all next time.


	48. The First Date

**The First Date**

Do you like Naruhina fluff? Because you're about to get a full chapter of pure, unadulterated fluff. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

"Naruto-kun, wait!"

Naruto had just walked out through the main doors of the hospital when he heard Hinata call out to him from behind. He turned around to see her running towards him. He was still a little taken aback to see the girl of his dreams chasing after him. They had been apart for so long that even hearing Hinata's voice in person did not feel real sometimes.

"What's up?" He asked in a slightly reserved tone.

"Can I join you? I feel like we need to catch up on a lot of things, for all the lapsed time between us. Also, I'm sure everything you heard earlier must have been difficult, so I'd like to help as best I can."

"I see. I'd be glad to have you along. In fact, it'd be a great help given that you always were a voice of reason. Thanks Hinata."

The two gingerly walked out of the hospital and on to the streets of Amegakure. It was the first time in so long that they even walked side by side casually like this. There was an air of awkwardness between them, but at the same time they both had that fluttery feeling in their stomachs that tends to take over when one is in the vicinity of their crush. It was as though they were about to embark on a first date.

"So, what do you want to do?" Hinata asked curiously.

"To be honest, I just want to take my mind off things and relax for a bit. I've found that helps to bring back focus in the long run. But for now I think we both need to go get a change of clothes. This hospital garb isn't exactly something we can walk around town in. Plus our normal clothes got pretty beat up in the midst of the whole battle." Naruto fished around his pocket and pulled out a very fat looking frog wallet. "Luckily though, this new and improved Mega Gama Version 6.1.9 survived the chaos and kept everything inside intact. The store clerk wasn't kidding when he gifted me this during my inauguration as Hokage and claimed it'd even survive through a war."

Hinata giggled at the sight of Naruto's frog wallet. It was almost exactly like the one he used to have as a child and he still carried it to this day.

"What's the matter Hinata? What's so funny?"

"Oh, I didn't mean to be rude or anything. It's just that the idea of the Hokage carrying around a frog shaped wallet from his childhood was a bit amusing. Anyway, you're right. Let's go get a change of clothes. I'd like to get out of this hospital garb if possible."

Both husband and wife walked through the main streets, which were bustling with life and brightly illuminated by a shower of neon lights during the evening time. As they searched for the perfect place to shop for some clothing, every now and then their hands would brush against each other and they would both become highly self-aware of any physical contact. But it was fun just exploring a new destination while making casual talk, just like the old days.

While looking around, both of their eyes fell upon a very eye-catching sign in front of giant store that specialised in traditional clothing – "Great Offers on Kimonos and Yukatas. Our Largest Sale of the Year".

Hinata always loved wearing traditional clothing whenever possible, especially given her upbringing within the Hyuga, who were very deeply rooted in history. But she knew that Naruto disliked wearing such types of clothing as he found them to be a hassle to put on. As such she decided not to even entertain the idea of going into the store to check out what they were offering.

"Yukata, huh? That sounds like a plan to me. I remember you always loved wearing Kimonos back in the day whenever the opportunity arose. Wanna go inside and see what they've got?"

Hinata had a look of shock in her face. Naruto voluntarily wanted to go shop for a yukata without being forcefully dragged in there. The only two times when she recalled him wearing one was during the time when he came to formally ask for her hand in marriage and on the marriage day itself.

"N-Naruto-kun, are you feeling okay? You're still not sick are you?"

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"It's just that you wanted to buy a yukata on your own accord. From what I remember, that's quite…unbelievable."

Naruto couldn't help but laugh at Hinata's response. "Oh yeah, I remember now. I used to almost be allergic to these things back in the day. But tastes do change over time. Being a Hokage candidate and then eventually becoming the Hokage requires you to go to a lot of formal events. That's when I realised how versatile yukatas can be. They're really comfortable to wear, look great and have a sense of maturity to them. It may have also helped that every time I would ask your old man for suggestions on formal clothing, he would keep sending me yukatas non-stop. If I had to guess, he likes seeing me wear those things. So I got fed up and decided to give them a proper try. I've not looked back ever since."

"Otou-sama always was a bit stubborn when it came to tradition. I remember him telling me how good the two of us looked during our marriage. He always tried to get you to appreciate the way of our ancestors. I guess he wore you down in the end." Hinata said happily, delighted to know that Naruto still shared a tight knit bond with her family.

They entered the store and were met with a few odd stares at first by the other customers due to their odd outfits. It was a rather high class clothing chain and the people shopping here were clearly of more refined taste, which made the couple stand out even more. Regardless of this, a store clerk came forward and greeted them with a smile, asking if she could be of assistance. Naruto greeted her back and told her exactly what they were after so that she could lead them to the appropriate section.

The selection of clothing was almost a bit overwhelming. There were far too many options. But with each other's help, they were able to select a handful to try on. It didn't take Naruto long before he settled on one that he liked. He was rather decisive when it came to most things, even shopping. Hinata on the other hand was having a much harder time making up her mind. She tried an entire slew of kimonos one after another, showing Naruto every getup in order to get his opinion. It had been years since she went shopping like this with him, or anyone else for that matter. She was always busy with work and taking care of her little family with Boruto, which left her very little money to spend on herself. Not that she ever minded that, but it was certainly fun going shopping with your significant other and just enjoy each other's company. Naruto felt the same way as well. Even though he was already done with picking out his own clothing long ago, he waited patiently for Hinata to make her choice and simply enjoyed being able to spend a bit of relaxing time with her, re-kindling their bonds once again. Thus, after much deliberation, along with Naruto's suggestions, Hinata was able to pick out a kimono that was very much to her liking.

Having finally put on some outfits that did not make them stand out like sore thumbs, the two set off outside once more.

"Naruto-kun, where are we going now?" Hinata questioned. So far she had just been following her husband without knowing where they were actually headed.

"I've been hungry for some time now, so I thought we could go get some dinner. What do you say?"

"That sounds good actually. Food would be nice indeed. But what should we get…" Hinata was lost in thought for a second before her eyes drifted across a small ramen stand at the side of the street, and instantly a light bulb went off in her head. "LOOK NARUTO-KUN – A RAMEN STAND! We could have dinner there."

In the past, there would be many occasions when the two would be out on a date and eventually they would end up at Ichiraku's to finish off the day with a healthy serving of ramen, the one food Naruto loved most. Even though Hinata was originally indifferent to ramen, she grew to appreciate it just from seeing Naruto's unfading love of it. So she tasted as many varieties of ramen that she could in order to make new flavours herself that he would love. After many years, she thought it would only be fitting that they share ramen as their first meal together.

"Uhhh…maybe we should skip that in this particular instance."

Hinata was shocked to her core at his response. Naruto skipping out on ramen. That was uncalled for. "Seriously Naruto-kun? A-Are you really okay? Should we go back to the hospital? O-O-Or could it be that you d-don't like ramen anymore?"

"No, that's not it at all. It's just that I already booked a place earlier. When you were trying out your clothes, I asked the store clerks about any good restaurants nearby. They all mentioned this really well-renowned and high class seafood restaurant that is apparently one of the best places to eat in this village. But because it's so popular, it's quite difficult to even gain admission. I called them up and by some miracle found out that they had one place up for reservation in the next hour. I remembered how much you used to love seafood, so I ended up making the reservation on the spot. Sorry for not consulting with you first, but if I didn't give them a reply then, I would have lost the place otherwise."

"Oh, no, don't worry about it. I'm glad you were thinking about me."

"Don't mention it. Besides Hinata, it would be remiss of me to take you to a ramen stand on our first date back together, if you would consider this as such."

Hinata's heart thumped quite hard at his words. He had a warm grin on his face, one that made her insides flutter just like the old days. She hadn't felt like this in so long. Such a beautiful feeling it was. Only Naruto could ever make her feel this way just from a few words alone. It was the even more so the case now given that he seemed to exude an aura of maturity around him and was in general a lot more perceptive of those around him. Hinata was pleasantly surprised to see that even though at the core Naruto was still as cheerful and lively as ever, as a person he had grown over the years they were apart. It felt like she was falling in love once again.

"Let's go Hinata." Naruto extended his hand towards her for the first time that day, one that made Hinata blush ever so lightly. But she happily accepted as they walked together hand in hand, sharing each other's warmth.

After only a couple of minutes of navigating through the busy streets, they reached a very refined establishment. Just one glance at the interior design and one could tell that it was a very high class restaurant. The lighting inside was intentionally kept dim, the place being only sufficiently lit by the faint glow of a blue light emanating from the walls, which were entirely an aquarium as far as the eyes could see, that hosted all sorts of exotic marine-life. The individual tables were lit further by candlelight. Overall, this gave the restaurant a very unique underwater sort of feel, one that was perfect for a romantic getaway.

Naruto walked up to the lady at the counter with Hinata in tow.

"Good evening to you both. Do you have a reservation with us?" She questioned while greeting them both courteously.

"Yes, I've reserved a place for Uzumaki Naruto. Here's my card." He handed over his payment card, which the woman accepted and did a quick check to verify his reservation.

"Ah yes, a table for two. In fact, you've got one of the best tables in the house. Please follow my colleague here. She will show you to your seats. Enjoy your meal."

Naruto and Hinata followed the waitress, who led them to a table in a quiet and secluded corner of the restaurant, dubbed the "VIP area", one that was segmented off to allow for greater privacy. This was one of the premier tables in the house and it certainly felt like it, given the amazing view of the aquarium right next to them.

"Please take a seat and make yourselves comfortable. When you're ready to order, just press this bell here and I'll be back to accommodate." The waitress kindly gestured to the bell at the centre of the table before leaving the couple to their own devices.

"Wow…this place looks very expensive. Is it really okay for us to be here?" Hinata asked as she looked around in a bit of awe. Although she was originally from a very wealthy background, the many years she spent living under monetary constraints made her feel out of place in this kind of environment.

"Don't worry about it. There are at least some perks to being the Hokage. Money is one of them I guess, not that I've ever really cared about that stuff too much. I barely ever spend much on anything, plus I ended up inheriting my parents' home, so I've managed to save up somewhat of a fortune over the years. It's only natural I spend that for my family, don't you think?"

Hinata nodded ever so lightly. His logic was hard to argue with. "How is it Naruto-kun, being the Hokage – the leader of the Konoha? It must feel good to finally have your dream job right?" She asked curiously.

"Hmmmm…well, it's a lot less glamorous than they'd make you believe. Most of the time I'm just sitting at the desk reading mission reports and signing off on mission assignments and other policies. When I'm not doing paperworks, I have to meet up with delegates from other villages and liaise with them. Honestly, it's a glorified office job. I'm not even gonna lie, it puts me to sleep sometimes. And Shikamaru's always nagging me 24/7 to get more work done when it feels like the documents I have to sign off are in endless supply. Let's just say it wasn't quite the job I expected."

Hinata audibly laughed at Naruto's complaints surrounding his new work. It was all a bit ironic given how single-minded he was about reaching this goal. "To be honest, you were always the type of person who sought out adventures. The job specification of the Hokage was essentially diametrically opposed to what you enjoyed doing back then. I'm not surprised you're finding it to be not as glamorous as it may have once seemed. But please keep at it. You'll get used to it over time. I'm sure the village is depending on you."

"It's not that I hate the job or anything. It does have its good sides. When I get to stand atop the Hokage's tower and overlook the village, it brings joy to my heart to see the people living in peace. It feels like I'm making progress towards fulfilling the dream that I inherited from my father." Naruto's expression clouded up a bit as he recalled the stories of his father and how his innocent dream was manipulated by others from the shadows. But he quickly shrugged those thoughts off as he did not want to ruin the nice mood between himself and his wife. "Anyway, enough about me Hinata. Tell me about yourself. I can only imagine how hard it was giving birth to Boruto and raising him by yourself. How did you manage?"

"It was difficult at first. I had brought a large sum of my savings money with me, most of which I used to buy the house that I live in with Boruto and to pay for my living expenses for a while until Boruto was born. But that of course would not last me forever. So I sought out work and given that there wasn't already an established bakery at the village, I thought I could use my baking ability to make one. So I rented out a place and that's how Himawari bakery was born. Initially, balancing work with taking care of an infant Boruto was challenging, but luckily I could leave Houka in charge to take care of him in the day until I got back home in the evening. Once Boruto grew up enough to understand our situation, he was very co-operative. He barely ever complained about any of the hardships that we went through monetarily and even started helping me out at the bakery after school at a very young age. I think for a child his age, Boruto is very mature and caring, which has been a great blessing for me."

"I can definitely attest to that. You've raised him well Hinata. For the few months that I've spent with him, he has literally been the best kid I've ever known. He learns everything so fast, is very intelligent, but above all, his love for those he holds precious is undying. He's highly protective of you at all times, to the point that I would tease him about it."

Hinata chuckled at the comment. "He can be a bit obsessive sometimes, but he's the apple of my eye and I couldn't be more thankful for having him."

"You and me both." Naruto replied as he placed his hand on top of Hinata's that was resting on the table. "I'm sorry for meeting him behind your back. I…didn't know what else to do. As a father, I just wanted to spend some time with my son and get to know him. I'm sorry."

"Please don't apologise. I can understand your feelings. Boruto himself has always wanted to meet you ever since he understood the concept of a father. I was just blinded by my wish to protect him from harm…that is why I fought and resisted so strongly. I realise now that it just wasn't right for me to hide your identity from him for so long. He would have found out one day eventually and would have come to resent me even more for not telling him. I understood that…but I didn't know what to do. I'm sorry as well."

"I guess we both went through our own internal conflicts. Rather than apologising to each other, let's leave all of that behind us and create a better future for ourselves, and most importantly, for Boruto."

Hinata nodded happily at Naruto's suggestion. Perhaps the family they always desired could finally become a reality.

"Anyway, let's leave the serious talk for later. I'm starving. Would you order something for me as well?" Naruto requested.

"Eh? You want to order for you?"

"Yeah, I'm not too familiar with seafood but I know you've always been a big fan. Can you get me something that's really good? I'd love to eat something of your choice."

Hinata blushed at the final comment but agreed. If Naruto wanted her to, she would gladly oblige. She ended up ordering the same food for the both of them, one that she believed would suit Naruto's palate as best as she could remember. The two continued catching up on old times until eventually the food was reserved, piping hot and ready to be eaten.

But unfortunately for Naruto, his right hand was still in a cast, leaving him with only his left hand to eat. He tried picking up the food with his chopsticks but to no avail as he just wasn't used to using his left hand to eat.

Hinata noticed his struggles and decided to lend a hand. She picked up a nice portion of fish from her own plate and extended the chopsticks towards her husband. "Naruto-kun…please let me help."

Naruto was a little taken aback by the boldness behind Hinata's action at first, but soon realised that what appeared to be a frustrating situation at first had turned out to be very fortunate indeed. There was no way he was going to skip on this. He had dreamed of moments like this for so many years. "If you insist, I'll gladly accept the offer."

He opened his mouth wide and ate the food Hinata served him. The food tasted amazing, perhaps more so than anything he could remember in recent memory. In reality though, the food could have been the most grotesque concoction ever created, but just the fact that Hinata was feeding it to him still would have made it taste heavenly. He gladly savoured every bite that his wife so caringly fed him. This was the gentle Hinata that he fell in love with so long ago, and he was falling in love once again somehow. Right now, he felt so lucky to just be alive.

After taking their time finishing up what could only be considered one of the best dinners they had in ages, mostly due to each other's company, the two headed over to a nearby hotel to spend the night, one that was suggested by the waitress at the restaurant. It was only a few minutes of walking before they arrived at a high rise hotel that seemingly reached up into the sky. Neither of them had seen such large architecture before, which was a signature of Amegakure. They entered and walked over to the receptionist together.

The young woman at the reception welcomed them with a warm smile and asked how she could be of assistance.

Naruto considered booking a room with a double bed for the two of them, but thought that perhaps Hinata would not be comfortable sharing a room with him yet. It had been a long time since they were last together and he didn't want to ruin the positive progress they had made in rekindling their relationship so far Thus he decided to play it safe and take matters slowly.

"Hi, I'd like to book two rooms for us if possible." He requested while handing the receptionist his payment card.

Both Hinata and the receptionist had surprised looks on their faces.

"I can do that, but are you two not together? Wouldn't it be better for you two to book a room together?" The receptionist suggested.

Naruto was caught in an awkward situation and was wondering how to explain this.

But before he could answer, Hinata quickly cut in, knowing what Naruto was probably thinking. "Yes, we're a married couple, so please book us a room for two."

Naruto looked at Hinata with wide eyes. "H-Hinata, are you sure about us sharing a room together?"

"Yes, I'm sure." She nodded without hesitation. This was her chance to amend their relationship. This is what she wanted deep down all along. She wanted to close the distance between them, so she couldn't hesitate anymore.

The receptionist was very confused at the exchange between the husband and wife standing in front of her. She didn't know what to think, when suddenly everything started to click.

" _This must be a case of marital discord. The husband must still be apprehensive about making up with his wife, but the wife on the other hand is desperate to get back together with him. That has to be it! I need to do my best to help them. One little push…one night of passion in one of our "special" rooms should mend all issues!"_ She completely misunderstood and became determined to fix a problem that she didn't even understand. "Sir, madam, I believe we have a room made just for the likes of you. It's a "special" room with the exact "facilities" the two of you will appreciate. I guarantee it. It's a very nice and spacious, and can only be booked by young couples for a special discounted price. Would you like to take it?"

Naruto was a little suspicious by how hard the receptionist was trying to sell them this place. "I'm not so su-"

"We'll take it!" Hinata cut in and answered for them both.

"Alright, booked!" The receptionist answered happily, handing Naruto back his payment card along with a set of keys to the room. "Please take the elevator to the very top floor. You're in room number 1 all the way to the left end of that floor."

Naruto and Hinata followed the directions and headed up to the twentieth floor of the hotel and then all the way to the end of the corridor, where they found their room. Both of them were quiet on their way up as they were a bit nervous about spending a night together after so many years.

Naruto opened the door and turned on the lights. A dim purple light lit up the giant room to reveal a large heart shaped bed for two and mirrors covering the entire ceiling. The walls were completely soundproof to allow the occupants perfect privacy.

Naruto's jaws slackened at the sight. _"Holy frig! Is this a love hotel?"_ He thought inwardly. _"No, that's not right. This is a normal hotel. They just have love hotel styled rooms at the top floor. This is what that receptionist girl must have meant by "special" room."_

"I'm gonna go get us a different room." Naruto turned around to leave, but before he could do so, Hinata grabbed the hem of his yukata tightly.

"I don't mind…if you're okay with it." She squeaked out in desperation. This was getting a little difficult for her as well.

Naruto was still in shock of how assertive Hinata had been thus far despite her face being completely flushed. He could see how hard she was pushing herself. He couldn't let her down now. "I-If this is what you want…then I'm fine as well."

"I-I-I'll go take a bath now!" She stuttered out before running off to the bathroom, leaving Naruto by himself.

Now that he was finally alone, Naruto had a moment to compose himself. He shut the door and sat down on the edge of the heart-shaped bed. No matter how he looked at it, this was definitely a room made to facilitate young couples making love. He sat around nervously for quite some time trying to think about his next course of action, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't think straight. So he gave up and started to look around the room to find anything of interest. It was then that his eyes fell upon the large closet and the small table with a drawer on the bottom right next to the bed.

Naruto moved over to the table and opened the drawer out of curiosity. The thing was stacked to the brim with a wide variety of "protection", "lubrication" and even "enhancement" items. He quickly shut the drawer and did not bother looking back. Yup, as expected of this place.

There was only really one place left to check now and that would be the closet. At this point Naruto expected the worse. Nothing would phase him. Thus out of sheer curiosity he opened up the closet door to take a peek inside. What he saw almost made him tumble backwards in shock. The bottom rack was stacked full of "toys" of the adult variety. Hanging from the top were full body latex gimp suits for males and dominatrix getups for females, fully equipped with whips and all.

Naruto slammed the closet doors shut with so much force that he nearly broke them off their hinges. His heart was beating like crazy. "WHAT THE HECK IS BDSM GEAR DOING HERE!? WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS WOULD EVEN…I mean…okay…Hinata as a dominatrix would be kind of…NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Naruto repeatedly punched himself in the face for even entertaining such thoughts about his precious wife. "What am I thinking? Hinata is pure. She's innocent. It's my duty to protect that innocence, not taint it with such vulgar thoughts. She must NEVER know about the existence of such things."

"Naruto-kun, what should I not know about?" Hinata asked curiously, having heard the last part of Naruto's monologue. She came out in a pure white bath robe, one that was provided by the hotel, as it would be far more comfortable to sleep in that a kimono. But this special bath robe by design did not do as adequate of a job in hiding all of her modesty, revealing a lot of skin. She could practically feel Naruto's gaze burning into her from top to bottom. It made her a little self-conscious and she naturally coiled up a bit.

" _Oh goodness me, that bath robe really isn't helping the situation right now. Please don't tempt me anymore. I don't know how long I can hold back at this point."_ Naruto desperately thought to himself.

Because he was so caught up in his own world, before he even realised it, Hinata had already closed the gap between them and was now standing in point blank range of him.

"Naruto-kun, what's inside that closet that you've been standing in front of? I'm a little interested to know given the commotion you were making earlier."

"Oh no! No no no no no! There's nothing inside. Absolutely nothing to see. It's empty. As empty as a desert when you're searching for water."

"If you try to hide whatever's inside that much, that just makes me want to find out even more. If there really is nothing inside, you shouldn't have any problem in letting me have a peek."

Naruto refused to budge, but that only made Hinata more determined. Thus a tug of war ensued between the two. Naruto tried to hold his ground in front of the closet while Hinata tried to pull him aside. With every passing moment, both of them grew more and more desperate in their respective stances, until eventually Hinata pulled her husband with so much force that they both lost their footing and tumbled on to the bed together, with Naruto landing on top of her.

As the initial daze of landing unceremoniously on the bed washed over, Naruto felt something incredibly soft and heavenly in the palm of his functioning hand. It felt like he was holding on to the culmination of all his hopes and dreams combined together. Thus he decided to give it a hearty squeeze for good measures.

"AHN!" He heard a loud moan from underneath him. Upon a closer inspection of the situation he was currently in, he found out that he was in fact in possession of a handful of Hinata's jugs.

Naruto jumped at least ten feet away from Hinata on to the other end of the room, his face redder than it probably ever had been. "I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I'm really really sorry. I didn't mean to do that. It was unintentional. I promise!"

Hinata, whose face was equally as red, shook her head up and down in response. "I-I-It's okay. You don't have to apologise. It was my fault for forcing you to move in the first place."

The situation between them had turned really awkward. Naruto needed to do something to alleviate this and fast. "H-Hinata, would you like to order a drink?"

Hinata snapped her head up in response. "Y-Yeah, sure."

Naruto quickly picked up the phone and called up room service. "Hi...uhhh…can we order a few drinks for our room?" He asked, to which he got a positive reply. He put the phone on hold for a second and looked up at his wife. "What would you like to order Hinata?"

Hinata sort of scrambled for a bit with the menu before hastily coming to a decision. "I'd like a lemonade if possible."

"S-Sure." Naruto replied. But now came the time to make his own decision. What drink would he like to order? Would he end up ordering a lemonade as well, or nothing at all? This was a tough decision indeed.

* * *

Today, I leave you all with an important question - Would you like Naruto to order _**lemon**_ ade as well? I'd love to know your thoughts.

Next time, even more Naruhina in - **The First Night**.

That is all I have for today. For now I'm off to board my next flight. Airport wifi is surprisingly decent...at least for uploading text files lol. I'll try and upload the next chapter once I get back from this work trip in about a week. Until next time, take care!


	49. The First Night

**The First Night**

* * *

Naruto and Hinata sat on opposite sides of the bed while drinking their glasses of lemonade. There was this awkward silence that permeated between them after the events that transpired earlier. Neither knew what to say or how to break through this stalemate. The distance between them created by so many years of separation was rearing its ugly head once more and they both scrambled mentally to think up ways to close it.

"Is it just me or can you just feel the tension between us right now? I bet I could cut it with a butter knife if I had one. You'd think this is the first time we're spending a night together, not a married couple with an eight year old child." Naruto decided to finally come out and express his honest feelings.

Hinata couldn't help but chuckle at Naruto's honesty. His trait of always speaking his mind hadn't quite changed. It helped make her feel at ease. "You're right. I think we're both trying too hard. Perhaps we should just be ourselves, just like old times…just like the first time we spent a night together."

Naruto's eyes widened with excitement. "You still remember about that time?"

"Of course. It is still to this day one of my fondest memories."

"It was the same for me too. Maybe we can take a trip down memory lane together. It's nice to remember our humble beginnings."

 **Flashback Start: 20 years ago**

A young Naruto was stoked to be having a friend over for the very first time. Sure it was to study for the upcoming exams, but to have Hinata over was just so exciting. He couldn't wait and thus ran around the house making sure that it looked in perfect condition. Before long the doorbell rang and Naruto rushed over to welcome his guests.

Upon opening the door, Naruto found the usual sight of Hinata gently smiling at him. What he did not expect however was the person that was standing beside her. It was her father, Hiashi, with the usual stoic look on his face.

"EHHH? What are you doing here old man?" Naruto asked as tactlessly as usual.

"Is that any way to welcome your guests, young man?" Hiashi asked back in a somewhat chiding tone. He took it upon himself to become a guardian figure for Naruto in the absence of his father.

"Oh yeah, sorry about that. Come on in." Naruto stepped aside to allow for the Hyuga to enter. Despite that, he was still shocked to see Hinata's father. "But seriously, what brings you here?"

"I'm here to keep an eye out on the two of you. Adult supervision if you will." Hiashi replied as he took off his shoes and the three made their way to the living room.

"I thought you'd send someone else to do that. You're the clan leader after all. Is it okay for someone as important as that to be looking after some children?"

Hiashi sighed. "Unfortunately, being a clan leader has its own set of hardships. Even I get stressed out with work from time to time. Right now, I just wish to be away from the others. This place is the perfect getaway. It always has been."

In the past, whenever Hiashi was tired or frustrated with his clan related work, he would always visit his closest friend in order to unwind. Together the two would spend the night away just relaxing and conversing about trivial matters. Ever since Minato's passing, Hiashi had no one to confide in. The stress had been steadily building up. Thus he took this opportunity to visit his old friend's home and just let loose for a bit. The atmosphere of this house alone had a soothing effect and the memories of the time spent here were precious. Plus he could keep an eye out on the children. It was like killing two birds with one stone.

"In any case, don't mind me. I'll keep myself busy. The two of you can get to studying for your exams." Hiashi instructed as he placed the bag he had been carrying on the dining table. "But before that, let the three of us have dinner first. We bought food along the way."

Thus the three sat down at the dinner table and started eating. It was fun for the kids to be able to eat together like this. Even though Naruto visited the Hyuga compound often, having dinner at his house away from the hustle and bustle of the clan was a great change of pace for both parties.

"Are you eating well while you are at home Naruto?" Hiashi decided to start some small talk and check up on his friend's son.

"Yeah, I'm eating some good food actually. There's someone who leaves me food often and cleans up the house as well. I think the Hokage arranged for it so that I don't have to worry about all that stuff. Pretty convenient if you ask me."

"I see. That is good to know. However as I've mentioned before, if you ever require company you're always welcome at the Hyuga compound any time. Hinata certainly appreciates it."

"Otou-sama is right. Hanabi loves playing with you as well. I mean…I…l-like it too." Hinata stuttered to get the last bit out. She didn't know why she sometimes had difficulty telling Naruto exactly how she felt about certain matters. She never really had such an issue before. Unbeknownst to her though, this was the side effect of her very rapidly developing crush on him, and these feelings were completely foreign to her.

"Thanks guys. I appreciate the love." Naruto responded to the kindness.

Once they finished eating, Hiashi decided to clean up and asked the children to get on with their studies. So Naruto led Hinata to his father's study, a small yet stacked room full of book shelves located right next to the living room. The sheer amount of books and documents in here was staggering, and even Hinata was impressed despite her clan having its own study area as well.

"There're a lot of books in here." She said almost a bit in awe.

"You think so too huh? My dad built this place. He was a really knowledgeable person. Well he had to be since he was going to be the next Hokage after all…" Naruto stopped abruptly as memories of his father overcame him with pain.

"It's been a while since the incident. I know first-hand how difficult it is, but are you managing without your father?"

Naruto quickly snapped himself out of his thoughts. He promised himself he'd be strong just like his father and walk in his footsteps. "Yeah I'm fine. I think I'm getting used to life without him. It's still painful to think about, but lately I've been dreaming about him quite a lot. They feel so different from all other dreams I have. They almost feel so real and I can remember them so clearly. In my dreams, I get to talk to him about everyday life and get to spend time with him like we used to. He even encouraged me to become Hokage. Honestly it's helped me cope with everything a lot better. Do you dream about your mother too Hinata?"

Hinata was a little surprised to hear about Naruto's dreams. The way he described them made them sound so enticing. She wished she could meet her mother too, even if just in her dreams. "I can't say I do. But I'm glad you're feeling better. If you ever need someone to listen to you, I'm always here."

"Thanks Hinata. It always calms me just talking to you about it. It's probably because you understand how I actually feel. I'll tell you more about my dreams when I have them." Naruto felt a strong bond forming with his newfound friend as she went through a lot of the emotional hardships he did from losing one of her own parents. As painful as it was, in its own way the pain brought them together and they appreciated each other for it. "Anyway, let's get to studying for the exam. If I am to become as great as my father one day, I need to study hard and graduate from the academy with top scores just like he did. We might even be able to find some stuff here that'll be of help."

Hinata nodded happily, glad to see Naruto regain his positivity. "Yeah, let's do our best together."

The two children focused on their exam subjects, all the way from ninja world history to mathematics and helped each other in understanding any parts either did not quite get. It was very helpful for Naruto to have someone as intelligent as Hinata explain certain topics to him. For Hinata the studying experience was a lot more engaging and fun with Naruto, whom she adored, as opposed to an older clan member tutoring her in a more formal setting. Thus they both made much greater progress together than they would have individually.

After studying for three hours straight, the two decided to take a quick break and unwind for a bit.

"Hey Hinata, you wanna play a game for a bit? We've been studying for some time now. I think I need to relax for a bit."

"Okay, sure. So what do you have in mind?"

"Cool. Let's go to the backyard first. I'll explain it there."

As the two were about to head to out into the backyard, they found Hiashi dozed off on the couch in the living room by himself. It was a rare sight for Naruto to see the Hyuga clan leader with his guard down. This gave him some silly ideas.

"Your father is asleep!" He said in a hushed tone. "This could be a golden chance!"

"Golden chance? Chance for what?"

"You know, we could like write something unflattering on his face with a permanent marker. I bet he won't see that coming."

"Eh? No! We shouldn't do that. That's terrible Naruto-kun. He's my father and the clan leader. He has a reputation to keep after all."

"Oh come on Hinata, you're no fun. You know it'd be hilarious. He seems a little too uptight."

"He'll get mad. Besides, he'd wake up if you tried to write on his face. He's a ninja after all and a very powerful one at that. He used to be part of your father's team."

"Oh yeah, that's true. I guess I didn't think it through. Oh well, let's head outside and start our game."

Hinata sighed a breath of relief, having subverted a disaster. The more she got to know Naruto, the more she realised how flippant he could be at times. In a way it meant it was never boring being around him, especially considering the more formal environment of her clan. But at the same it could also be tiring keeping the young Uzumaki in check.

"So, what are we playing?" She asked as the two took a stepped on to the backyard and now stood under the starry night sky.

"Hide and seek! You're seeking first and I'm hiding. Come and find me after 60 seconds. LET'S GOOOOO!"

And just like that, Naruto was gone like the wind back inside the house and Hinata was left standing outside dumbfounded. She didn't even get a chance to tell him the advantage she had in this game. Clearly Naruto did not yet know what the Hyuga's eyes were truly capable of. At first Hinata thought it would be unfair to use her Byakugan to locate Naruto's whereabouts, but something inside of her wanted to use it in order to toy around with him. She giggled a bit at the thought and went along with it. Unbeknownst to her, Naruto's personality traits were starting to rub off on her.

Naruto on the other hand was currently hiding inside the closet of his parent's room behind an assortment of clothing. He knew how difficult it would be to find him here. It was now just a matter of biding his time. Eventually after a bit he saw Hinata walk into the room through the small opening between the closet doors. She searched everywhere – under the bed, behind the curtains until slowly making her way over to the closet. Naruto's heart was pounding, but just as it looked like she was about to check the closet, she suddenly turned around and moved away from his field of view. Naruto let out a sigh of relief and giggled inwardly. He had won.

"FOUND YOU!" Hinata shouted as the door to the closet swung open the next moment.

"BWAAAA!" Naruto screamed from the sudden shock of being found and fell face first on to the floor.

Hinata was able to gracefully avoid him, but quickly helped him back up. "Are you okay Naruto-kun?"

"Y-Yeah I'm fine." He replied while rubbing his nose, which he had smacked quite unceremoniously. "But to think you found me. I was sure that was a great hiding spot. Oh well, it's my turn now Hinata. I'll wait outside for 60 seconds. Make sure to hide by then."

Once again like the wind he was gone and Hinata was left to her own devices. She did find an initial hiding spot, but once Naruto started searching for her, she used her Byakugan to pinpoint his location and changed her hiding location accordingly to avoid him every time. Naruto kept trying and trying, but he just could not find her. At first he refused to give him due to his stubborn nature, but eventually he decided to throw in the towel and yelled out to Hinata to show herself.

"I guess I win then." She said from behind him.

"BWAAAAA!" Naruto screamed out once again in shock. He was not expecting her to appear behind him like that at all. "Whoa Hinata, you scared the living daylights out of me! But man, you're too good at this."

"Sorry about that." She apologised but giggled inwardly at the fact that Naruto had no idea of the unfair advantage she had.

"Anyway, even though I lost, it was still a lot of fun playing together. I'll beat you next time though."

"I don't get to play like this too often at the clan, so it was fun for me too. Let's do this again sometime, but for now we should get back to studying."

Naruto agreed and thus the two went back to the study to get back to work. They studied well past midnight and made great progress. It wasn't often that Hinata could stay up this late. It was as though she was breaking all of her clan's usual curfews even though she had her father's permission. It was actually kind of fun.

"Naruto-kun, maybe we should stop for toni…" Before she could finish, Hinata looked over towards her partner and found him out cold, his face laying on top of a text book and him drooling all over it.

Hinata smiled at the sight. It was just so cute seeing Naruto's sleeping face. She saw his hand lying right next to his face on the table and suddenly got the urge to hold it despite not knowing why. He wouldn't mind would he? No, he probably wouldn't. Having convinced herself that, she slowly moved her hand over to his, her heart pounding at the thought of holding his hand, but just as she was about to touch his, Naruto shuffled slightly in position, causing Hinata to jump away from her chair like a bunny rabbit.

"Hinata…I'll find you next time for sure." He whispered in his sleep.

"He's dreaming about me." Hinata sighed a breath of relief as she sat back down next to him. The thought brought a smile to her face and she mustered up the courage to extend her hand and place it on top of his. "It's so warm and strong."

Hinata felt so content right now. She looked at Naruto's peaceful sleeping face once more and became sleepy herself. Thus she laid her head next to his and before long she too was out cold.

Some time later, Hiashi awoke from his impromptu sleep and got up to wash his face. He didn't even realise he had dozed off at some point. The entire week's workload was really getting to him. He decided to head over to the study in order to check up on the children and was greeted by a very welcoming sight. Young Naruto and Hinata were sleeping next to one another with their heads on the desk and hands held together.

Hiashi almost jumped in joy at the sight. These were the baby steps to the "Uzumaki-Hyuga Alliance" that he and Minato had once envisioned for their children, and the results from such a union would certainly be of great magnitude. Little did he know at the time that one day his hopes and dreams would indeed come to fruition.

 **Flashback End: Present Day**

The older Naruto and Hinata were lying in bed next to one another while also holding hands, just as their younger selves. They looked up at the ceiling mirror to see their own reflections and could almost envision their younger selves.

"Even though so many years have passed since we first became friends, I can honestly say that my feelings for you are just the same as back then." Naruto confessed with a smile. He was just glad to have his precious wife by his side again.

"Perhaps not much has changed between us after all." She replied, also feeling content in just having her beloved husband next to her once more. "On a slightly different but related note, how is father doing?"

"The old man's still kicking around as the Hyuga clan leader. He doesn't seem to be showing any signs of slowing down either. I actually even brought him to meet with Boruto a while back. You should have seen the look on his face when he first met his grandson. He was practically about to cry. I swear I haven't ever seen him like that."

"Is that so? Now I kind of wish I was there to see his reaction first hand. Given the number of times he would indirectly prompt me to bring forth the next progeny of the Hyuga clan after you and I got married, I would imagine he was beyond himself when he finally got to meet that grandchild face to face."

"Absolutely, and it's always heart-warming to see the old man happy. He has been nothing short of a father figure to me, when my real father wasn't around. Through good times and bad, he has always been and continues to be one of my greatest supporters. For that I'm truly grateful."

"Believe me when I say this, Otou-sama has always considered you as nothing short of his own child. I don't think I've ever told you this, but on the day of our marriage, he told me something that moved me in a profound way. You see, during marriage, most fathers tell their daughters about how he is entrusting her to her husband and hopes that her husband will take good care of her in his stead from then on. However, Otou-sama did not tell me anything of that nature. In fact, what he told I will remember forever, _"Hinata, on this day I'm entrusting you with my son. He is someone truly precious to me. Therefore, you must promise me that you will take the utmost care of him and grant him a family that he rightfully deserves"._ Those were his exact words to me and as you can see, you were very much like a son he never had."

"This gives me even more of a reason to return to Konoha ASAP. If Sasuke really intends to target old man in order to bring himself to power, then I must protect him."

Hinata nodded wholeheartedly in agreement, but at the same time an important thought re-surfaced on her mind. "What about your parents Naruto-kun? Have you thought about what your response to them will be?"

"Yes. That has been in the back of my mind for some time now, and after spending the day together with you, I've finally reached my decision. I don't want to hold any grudges. I'm going to forgive and make good with my parents, just for the simple fact alone that had they taken me away from Konoha when I was a child, I may have never gotten to meet you Hinata. I'm glad they kept me in Konoha, and because of that I was able to find my significant other and best friend alike…my wife and the mother of my child...the woman I love most. That is why I have no regrets anymore. As long as you are by my side, my sights are clear."

Hinata was so moved by her husband's words that she did not know quite how to respond.

"There's one more thing I've been thinking about Hinata. I think that after this whole ordeal with the Uchiha is over and Konoha is safe, I will give up my title of Hokage." Naruto confessed in a tone that showed not an ounce of regret, which shocked Hinata. "I'm not sure anymore whether this dream of mine to become the Hokage that I've been chasing was ever truly my own, or one that was planted in me by those around me. But one thing I do know for certain is that I want to be with you, the one I love. I want to have a family with you. I want to be there for Boruto, our precious son. And I'm not willing to sacrifice all of this for the sake of a dream that may or may not have been my own to begin with. Hinata, after I fulfil my final duty of protecting the village as its Hokage, let's go somewhere far away where no one from the village will be able to find us. There, the two of us along with Boruto will be able to live a peaceful life together. Finding out about the truth from my parents and being apart from you for so long has made me realise that this always was my one true dream, and I will not let it slip by my hands a second time, not at any cost."

Those words, they struck Hinata very hard. Those were the very words that she wanted to hear all those years ago when she decided to leave Konoha. After all the hardships and internal struggle, to hear him value her and their child above all others; to want to go to any lengths for them, even sacrifice his lifelong dream, made Hinata tear up. She couldn't hold back her feelings any longer and wrapped Naruto in a tight hug while bawling her eyes out.

"W-What's the matter Hinata? Did I say something wrong? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry." Naruto scrambled to defuse the situation, but Hinata held him in a vice-like grip and would not let go.

"Please give me a moment. I think…I needed this for 8 long years."

Naruto understood how his wife felt. He wanted this too. Thus he held her close in a warm embrace until she had calmed down and was once again ready to talk.

"Naruto-kun, you do not need to leave Konoha for us. You are the Hokage and there are many in the village who look up to you and depend on you now. You are responsible for them too. Whether or not becoming the Hokage was originally your dream, the blood, sweat and tears you poured to reach that goal were all real. I was there to witness it first hand myself and I can tell you this - one simply cannot pursue a goal with that much determination if it's not their dream. Even if the inspiration came from someone else - to become the Hokage - that was indeed your dream, and you've finally achieved it. You must not throw all of that away now."

"But Hinata-" Naruto was about to argue, but Hinata gently placed her index finger over his lips in order to stop him.

"I know what you're about to say but I want you to hear me out first. Naruto-kun, all those years ago when I left Konoha, I was being selfish. I wanted you all to myself. But I understand now that the village and the entire shinobi world at large need someone like you. If anyone can change the shinobi system for the better, it is you. But you cannot do it alone. So this time, I will be there by your side to help you achieve whatever goal…whatever dream that you may have. Because that is what best friends do. As your wife, this time I will fulfil my duty and place my faith upon you. I'm sure you will not go back on your promise. So together, let's create a home and a village where you, me and Boruto can live in true peace, alongside all those who have entrusted you with the role of their leader – the Hokage."

Hinata's words were like a beacon of light for Naruto, one that cleared up any last bits of doubt left in his mind. He knew exactly what he needed to do, and with her by his side once more, there was nothing that would be able to stop him from achieving his dreams, just like old times.

* * *

Sorry, of course I had to troll a bit with the whole "lemonade" thing. You know how I am. But regardless, even though you may not get to read exactly how Himawari is born, she will very soon be properly featured as part of the epilogue chapters.

For now, Naruto and Hinata's reunion is finally complete! It took nearly 2 years of writing to get here, but we're finally here. So it's quite a monumental occasion for me. Are you happy with how their whole reunion turned out? And did you enjoy the journey to this point? I'd love to know because it certainly wasn't a smooth ride, that's for sure.

There are only 2-3 chapters left that will deal with the liberation of Konoha. We're currently on track to finish those by the end of this year. After that will be the epilogue chapters that will wrap things up. But...I can assure you, even in this last stretch, surprises await! So stay tuned.

Let me know your thoughts as always. Until next time, take care.


	50. Ascension of Konoha

**Ascension of Konoha**

* * *

 **A few days later; Hyuga courtyard…**

Hanabi was overlooking the training of several of her younger clanmates, instructing them in the art of the gentle fist. She was considered one of the finest teachers of the Hyuga's taijutsu and thus was tasked with looking after the training of the future generation.

While training her fellow clanmates, she caught a glimpse of the arrival of someone completely unexpected to their front gates – the Uchiha's new leader. Hanabi quickly made her way over to the entrance in order to check out what was going on.

"Good morning…Uchiha-san. What brings you here?" Hanabi asked the new visitor.

"I need to speak to the Hyuga leader. Take me to him." Sasuke ordered in an emotionless tone, not even making eye contact with the Hyuga he was speaking to.

This was downright disrespectful to Hanabi. Not only the fact that she was clearly being nonchalantly brushed off, but ordered around like some kind of a servant inside of her own home.

"And what business might you have with my father?" She asked, this time with a hint of aggression in her voice.

"It's none of your business. This is important and I don't have time to waste, so either call him here or take me to him, now."

"Hey, watch your tongue! Who do you think you are speaking to me like tha-"

"Hanabi, is that any way to treat our guests?" Hiashi cut into his daughter's tirade and gave her a displeased stare, before moving his eyes over to his guest. "This is certainly an unusual sight. What brings you here today to the Hyuga compound, Uchiha?"

"I need to speak to you about some important matters regarding Konoha and our roles as the leaders of the founding clans of this village."

"Very well. Follow me to my office." Hiashi instructed as he made his way inside the compound. Although he was somewhat suspicious of the reason of his guest's visit, he did not wish to be rude either, which was part of the Hyuga's code of treating their guests.

As Hanabi looked at the two walk away, she had a bad feeling within. Something just felt off.

Within a few minutes, Hiashi and Sasuke were at his office and currently sitting face to face around the kotatsu in the middle of the room.

"So, what is it that you wanted to speak to me about?" Hiashi asked, feeling both curious yet cautious at the same time. This was the first time ever that he could recall an Uchiha visiting him for business at his compound.

"I'm going to cut right to the chase. I need you and your clan to support the Uchiha in an invasion of Kumogakure. They're at the brink of destruction. Konoha can use this opportunity to launch an all-out assault and take over that village, by force or otherwise."

"What!?" Hiashi was a man who barely ever lost his composure, but Sasuke's proclamation completely caught him from left field. "Surely you jest!"

"Do I look like the kind of person who would be joking, especially about a matter as important as this?"

"There is no way the village would agree to such a preposterous plan, especially without the Hokage's directive. You must understand that."

"Of course. That is why I'm here to enlist your clan's cooperation. With the Uchiha and Hyuga at the helm, the rest of the village will follow. Given that the Hokage isn't here right now, this invasion will be our directive."

"And you think I'm going to agree to cooperate, possibly going against the Hokage's wishes?"

"The Hokage's will has been made clear. He's the one that initiated this siege of Kumogakure. I just intend to finish it."

"I know the Hokage personally. He would never start a war against another village with the intention of invading them. He is NOT a warlord! There must be a reason behind it all and I firmly believe that he'll return shortly to explain his actions. My people are currently searching for him as we speak. The Hyuga clan will support the Hokage to the bitter end for as long as I am its leader!"

During their entire conversation, Sasuke's head was held low and he didn't even bother looking directly at his host. But for the first time he raised his head and made direct eye contact with his soon to be victim.

"It wasn't a choice Hyuga…it was an order…"

Hiashi finally lost his cool and slammed his hands on the table. He was not going to be disrespected in his own home. "WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TO ORDER ME AROUND IN MY OWN H-"

But before he could finish, Hiashi found himself in an alien world in a moment's notice, one that was completely devoid of any colour or life – a vast array of black and white emptiness. Before he knew it, he found his entire body was tied up by chains against a great tree, withered of all its leaves. No matter how hard Hiashi tried, he could not break free.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?"

"Welcome to my world. You're the first to come here, and there is no escape. Such is the power of a genjutsu cast by the great Mangekyou Sharingan." For the first time, a smirk appeared on Sasuke's face as he watched his victim trying so hard to escape captivity. "I'll let you in on a little secret. It was the Uchiha who orchestrated the assassination of the Raikage. Your little daughter and son-in-law played their part perfectly in our plans by sacrificing themselves for the sake of this village, all to protect their beloved son. Now it's your turn to play your part."

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM!? WHERE ARE THEY!? IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO THEM, YOU WILL PAY THE ULTIMATE PRICE!" Hiashi shouted at the top of his lungs, now writhing desperately in order to get his hands on the Uchiha that stood before him.

"Here…let me make your suffering just a little bit worse." Sasuke materialised a sword in his hand out of thin air and drove it right into Hiashi's heart.

Hiashi coughed up a mouthful of blood and the pain was excruciating, but he wasn't dead. The suffering only continued. He was stuck in what appeared to be a never-ending nightmare.

"It's no use struggling. You're trapped in one of the strongest genjutsus in existence, and while you're trapped here, your brain's conscious control over your body has been severed, allowing for me to control your actions instead. So unless someone realises you're trapped here and breaks you out from the outside, or you somehow manage to overpower me in my own world, there is no escape…just pain and suffering as long as I will it." Sasuke explained in a gleeful tone. "Let's face it – neither of that is going to happen. But don't stop me from keeping you trying though. I'll enjoy watching you struggle."

Thus Sasuke opened his eyes in the real world, his victim sitting in front of him, now trapped under his control. Yet no one would be able to tell. That was one of the powers of his new eyes. He exited the room and saw Hanabi standing not too far from her father's office, clearly agitated by something. Even though she had been watching the two inside the room with the Byakugan, she had no idea what had actually happened to her father.

Sasuke paid no mind and took his leave. On his way out though, a sharp pain spread from his eyes to every inch of his body unlike anything he had ever felt before, one that nearly made him lose his balance.

" _The side effects of using these eyes seem to already be kicking in. Even though this pain may be tough to bear, if this is what it takes to bring Konoha to its destined greatness, then I will withstand any and all hardships that stand in my way."_ With those final thoughts, Sasuke exited the Hyuga compound in preparation of the next big step in his plan.

 **The next day; Hokage tower…**

Given the currently unknown status of the Hokage and the news of his battle against the Raikage, as well as the demise of the Uchiha clan leader, Konoha had grown increasingly restless with each passing day. Everyone wanted to know what was going on and almost all shinobi previously on missions had been called back to the village to remain on high alert for a possibility of retaliation from Kumogakure. Turmoil was starting to ensue. Thus, all the clan leaders and main representatives along with the authorities of the village called for a strategy meeting in order to determine the best course of action going forward in the absence of the Hokage.

Shikamaru, being the closest working representative of the Hokage decided to stand up from his seat along the roundtable and address the audience. "As you're all aware, we're gathered here today to discuss the state of Konoha, especially given the fact that the Hokage is still AWOL and we are unaware of his current status. We're still searching for him to the best of our abilities. We do know that his last known whereabouts was in Kumogakure, where he was part of a great battle with the Raikage. This news has been causing a lot of instability within Konoha and all current operations have been brought to a halt in order to fend off any potential counter-attack from Kumogakure, even though that is unlikely given the damage they've already suffered. Therefore, as the respective leaders of the clans that make up this village, we need to chart out our future course of actions, at least until we're able to get a more definitive idea of the Hokage's status."

Sasuke stood up as Shikamaru took his seat and glanced across the room, before making his grand declaration. "We have in our hands right now a once in a lifetime opportunity, one that we cannot let slip through our fingertips. Therefore, I propose this plan – a full scale siege of Kumogakure to bring that village and its forces under our control."

There was a momentary silence in the room followed by a plethora of gasps and whats from the others sitting around the table.

"Have you gone insane!?" Konohamaru, the current leader of the Sarutobi clan, yelled out from across the room. "An invasion? Do you realise what you're even proposing?"

"I agree with Konohamaru. This is just…ridiculous." Shikamaru added in agreement.

"Tell me Nara, why is it so ridiculous?"

"Because you are planning to invade another major shinobi village! That is akin to announcing all-out war on them! Have you even taken into account the repercussions of such an action on our own village?"

"Why shouldn't we use this opportunity to finally take down one of our greatest enemies ever since this village was formed? Do you think they wouldn't do the same if we were in the same situation? Kumogakure has instigated many battles against us throughout ages and we've suffered much loss against them. They even planted a double agent within our village that led to the assassination of my father, the leader of the most powerful clan of this village. Not to mention the fact that Kumogakure has been stealing confidential intelligence from our village using some of our own people. Why do you think they've been doing all of that?" Sasuke questioned aggressively, one that caused the majority of people in the room who were outraged by his idea to take a moment to consider his arguments. "If we combine the powers of all the clans and shinobi of Konoha and act fast, we will suffer little to no casualties at all in this operation. In return we will not only defeat one of our greatest enemies, but gain much of their resources. All status reports on Kumogakure suggest that they're heavily weakened and are currently teetering at the brink of destruction. They're practically defeated. They don't even have a leader anymore!"

"WELL NEITHER DO WE!" Konohamaru cut in, this time in a much more aggressive tone. "And without a leader, what you're suggesting is out of the question!"

"That's right For Konoha to collectively undertake such a huge operation, we would need the Hokage's unequivocal guidance in this matter. Without knowing his directive, this is absolutely out of the question." Shikamaru added.

"But we do know the Hokage's directive." Sasuke countered in a calculating tone. He saw this coming from a mile away. "The Hokage is the one that launched this all-out assault on Kumogakure. He is the one who crippled Kumogakure and his actions are what led to the assassination of the Raikage. It should be abundantly clear to anyone with even a shard of common sense what the Hokage's intentions were."

"But the Hokage never spoke to any of us about any plans to invade Kumogakure. Surely he would have told us if this was indeed part of his plans." Shikamaru countered. Even he was perplexed by Naruto's actions thus far.

"Actions speak louder than words, and with his actions the Hokage has laid a clear path in front of the village. He has created for us a golden opportunity and we cannot waste it by any means. The future of Konoha is at stake and the shinobi world at large is at stake!"

"The Uchiha is right." Hiashi spoke for the first time that day and to the shock of everyone. If anyone would vehemently support the Hokage, it would be him given the relationship they shared. "The Hokage's directives are clear to me as well and my clan will act in accordance. I have lived long enough to see the many battles our village has fought against Kumogakure and the repercussions of those battles. Time and time again they've tried to steal the Hyuga's precious doujutsu, along with our village's other secrets. Thus, in order to protect the future of Konoha, the Hyuga will join the Uchiha in the siege of Kumogakure."

There was silence across the room after hearing Hiashi's input. He was considered one of the oldest and wisest of all those present in the room and his decision to join the Uchiha held great weight. Both the Uchiha and the Hyuga had just decided to combine forces, the two strongest clans in Konoha, if not the whole world. Given Kumogakure's current crumbling state, just these two clans themselves could potentially carry out the siege. Even though it seemed outrageous at first, the other clan leaders were seriously re-considering the whole plan.

"You know what, maybe Sasuke is right. Maybe we should be using this opportunity to take over Kumogakure after everything they have done to us over the years. An opportunity like this probably won't arise again and it may just be better for the village in the long run. My clan will join as well." Kiba threw the Inuzuka clan into the gauntlet before turning to his best friend. "What about you Shino?"

"If this was indeed the Hokage's wish and the others agree, then my clan will lend its assistance." The hooded and mysterious leader of the Aburame clan agreed to collaborate.

"You guys are actually serious about this, aren't you?" Shikamaru questioned in disbelief and looked over to his previous squad mates. "You two aren't thinking of joining as well, right?"

Both Chouji and Ino held their heads down and did not reply. They were both incredibly conflicted. After all, both of their significant others were currently imprisoned on charges of colluding with Kumogakure.

Sasuke saw this opportunity and decided to use their emotional distress to his advantage. "It is true that your family members are currently in the midst of being tried for their crimes, but consider this. If Kumogakure and its forces were to become a part of Konoha, perhaps there would be less of a reason to consider either of them traitors. Maybe, just maybe, they could be granted a reprieve and the sentence could be lessened."

Sasuke's offer was certainly enticing and it caused a stir within both the Yamanaka and Akimichi. For once, both of them felt hope after much despair. They were willing to do whatever it took to save their families. Little did they understand that it was the Uchiha that were manipulating them from the very beginning.

"Look, I'm not going to force anyone to join me. The Uchiha and the Hyuga will be regrouping tonight to plan out the exact details of the siege. We will spread this message to the rest of the shinobi of Konoha. Whoever wishes to join us in this operation can come to the meeting tonight. We intend to prepare and leave for Kumogakure as soon as possible, within a day or so. I hope to see you all there. That is all." Sasuke's job was done and thus he took his leave. He had successfully gained a large number of supporters and riled up the rest to at least consider joining his cause. Everything was going according to plan and the rest would fall into place. This would be the beginning of Konoha's rise as the singular hidden village that united all shinobi across the world under one authority – the one TRUE Kage!

 **Early next morning…**

There was a huge uproar within the Uchiha compound as another member of their clan was found dead within the compound after being stabbed right through the heart. This time it was Mikoto Uchiha, Sasuke's mother.

Paranoia was setting in within the other members of the Uchiha clan given that not too long ago their previous clan leader had been killed. Now his wife was also dead. Many within the clan were angry and sought vengeance. Despite the unfortunate circumstances, Sasuke, as their current leader and one of the closest to the victim re-assured his fellow clanmates that their clan would not suffer any further losses and that the anger they felt needed to be harnessed to bring down their enemies. Thus he rallied the Uchiha clan with only one sight in mind - the ascension of Konoha!

* * *

Join me on the 1st of January next year for the finale to Naruto and Hinata's reunion. It's only fitting that the ending happens with a new beginning. You'll find that there is a deeper meaning to that indeed.

As for today, I'll leave you with a bit of a murder mystery to solve. Who assassinated Mikoto? I'll make it a little easier - it wasn't Sasuke, but it was an Uchiha. The real question though - why? I'd love to see if anyone gets it. It's a little challenge I leave you with since it'll play a big role in the next chapter, aptly named **"Team Zero Reunited"**.

That is all I have for today. BTW, yesterday was the 2nd anniversary of this story! I know I normally don't give exact dates for chapters since my update pattern is haphazard at best, but this time I'll make a conceited effort given that it is the finale to this entire story arc. Thank you all for joining me on this crazy journey and here's to the surprises that lie ahead in the new year. Thus I close out 2017 with the usual - take care until next time!


	51. Team Zero Reunited

**Team Zero Reunited**

Here it is, finally. The culmination of Naruto and Hinata's reunion.

* * *

 **A few days later; day of the siege…**

The Uchiha being the founding clan of Konoha had an entire section of Konoha to themselves, dubbed the Uchiha district, in the middle of which was the Uchiha compound as well as several other landmarks. Sasuke along with nearly the entire Uchiha clan were currently gathered in a park within the Uchiha district. This was the rendezvous point for all those who were going to take part in the siege of Kumogakure. The Hyuga, Aburame, Inuzuka, Akimichi and Yamanaka clans were all here, along with numerous other shinobi that did not belong in any particular clan but decided to join in on the operation, given its large scale support from the various clans. Victory was essentially guaranteed for Konoha, or so was the belief that Sasuke had managed to instil within many.

As the party readied to head out to their destination, another large group of shinobi arrived at the scene to intercept them – this one composed of the Nara and Sarutobi clans, as well as those who supported their viewpoint. A very concerned Hanabi was practically the only that Hyuga stood with them.

"What do you want, Nara?" Sasuke asked Shikamaru, the one who seemed to be at the helm of this other group. "We do not have any more time to waste. The hour has arrived to put our plans in motion. It is time for Konoha to ascend into something greater."

"No, this is not right. What you're trying to do here goes against the ethos of this village. Forcing others into submission, no matter how much animosity they hold towards us is not acceptable. Most importantly, we believe that the Hokage would never agree to this, turning the village into a conquering regime. Therefore, all of you must stop, for the greater good of this village." Shikamaru argued his case one final time.

"FATHER, he's right! You must understand Naruto-niisama well enough by now to know that he would not want this to be the course that our village takes. Please, come back to your senses." Hanabi pleaded to her father. He had been acting a bit abnormally as of late and she was worried that their clan was taking part in something that Naruto would not approve of.

"What I'm doing here…what WE are doing is what is best for this village. After this, Konoha will be overwhelmingly the strongest ninja village in history. If you have no intentions of joining us, then step aside and watch Konoha's ascension." Sasuke declared to the rest with his arms spread wide.

"We won't step aside and watch our village be turned into something grotesque. As his advisor, I owe it to the Hokage to keep his vision alive." Shikamaru made his own declaration with his people backing him.

Konoha was divided and it very rapidly reached its breaking point.

"Then you leave me with no other choice." Sasuke grabbed the hilt of his sword – an act that made the eyes of all those around him widen. This was escalating to a dangerous state.

But at that moment, a man that no one expected jumped in between the two opposing groups. "That is enough Sasuke. It is time for you to stand down."

Sasuke was shocked to see Itachi arrive at the scene. His brother seemed to have disappeared for some time ever since his mother's death. "Itachi, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here to stop you from leading Konoha down a path of no return. What you're doing here is attempting to repeat history – a history that must not be repeated. Your vision, our father's vision, and most importantly, the vision of our ancestors will not end in peace, only war. There is a reason why Madara is no longer here with us. Some things are best left in the past Sasuke, and the Uchiha's past is certainly best left untouched."

"Who are you to tell me what to do and what not to do? I was chosen as the rightful heir to the Uchiha. I am the one who will determine what is right and wrong, and the Uchiha will take Konoha to heights never before even imagined. We will change the ninja way for the better. And it starts with the siege of Kumogakure. Therefore, this is your last warning. Step aside and let me do my job."

"Unfortunately, even if you are my little brother; that is something I cannot do. This has to stop."

"Then you leave me with no other choice Itachi." Sasuke pulled out his sword and dashed towards his brother. "I will remove you by FORCE if necessary."

It was a moment of surprise for everyone to see the fallout between the two Uchiha brothers reach its breaking point. But before Sasuke could even make it to his brother, two powerful bursts of wind flew past Itachi and hit Sasuke like brick wall, sending him flying backwards.

Gasps of disbelief spread out across all those present from seeing the arrival of the two newcomers seemingly out of nowhere. But Itachi didn't even need to look back to know who they were. He could recognise them just from the technique alone and it brought a smile to his face. "Naruto…Hinata."

Naruto and Hinata walked up to their teacher and stood on both sides of him.

"Seems like we made it in time for the action, huh?" Naruto asked with a huge grin. Even though Konoha was in a messy state, he couldn't hold in his excitement of standing together with his team once more.

"It is nice to see you again, Itachi-sensei."

"Hinata...it really is you. It is almost unbelievable after all these years. Although the circumstances surrounding your departure were difficult to say the least and I wish I could have lent a better helping hand in supporting you both, I always believed you'd be back one day, or at least Naruto would ensure it. I'm glad to see you well."

Before their conversation could go any further though, a shout directed at the Hokage broke it up. "Naruto, where the heck did you disappear to since the incident in Kumogakure!? Better yet, what were you thinking doing everything that you've so far!? I don't even know where to begin." Shikamaru asked the all-important questions that every shinobi wanted answers to. Thus everyone present was listening intently to what their Hokage had to say.

"Ah man, you kinda put me on the spot here and now I'm a little lost for words with everyone looking at me like that. It's a long story and we're kind of in a pickle here, so for now let's just say that some complicated stuff happened with my family which left me with no choice but to fight Kumogakure and kind of got injured during it. Then I got back together with Hinata after 8 years. So after getting away from the enemies, I decided to take some R&R to heal up and spend some much needed time fooling around with my wife."

Almost everyone's jaws collectively hit the floor at the Hokage's last statement.

Hinata's face on the other hand lit up like fireworks. "W-W-W-W-What are you saying Naruto-kun? People are going to get the wrong idea."

"Are you firkin kidding me? You mean to say while I was here in Konoha losing my hairline out of concern over what happened to the Hokage, you were out there somewhere "fooling around" with your wife!? If you really were injured, the least you could have done is at least let us know you were alive!" Shikamaru was a man who barely ever lost his cool, but right now he was teetering on the edge of losing it out of exasperation.

"Oh don't worry about that Shikamaru. The whole charm point of your hair is the pineapple stalk on the back of your head, so a receding hairline shouldn't be a big deal for you at all." Naruto commented honestly about his advisor's look.

And that final comment was all Shikamaru could take as the stress finally broke him. "HOLD ME BACK! HOLD ME BACK BEFORE I TAKE HIM OUT MYSELF! I'M SICK OF BEING THE HOKAGE'S BABYSITTER RATHER THAN HIS ADVISOR!"

Konohamaru quickly jumped in and locked his arms around Shikamaru in order to hold him in place and stop him from committing any potential crimes.

"Enough of this stupidity!" Sasuke shouted at all those who stood in his path, which made Naruto glare directly at him. It was time to get serious.

"I know what you're planning Sasuke and Konoha will not be invading any other village, or instigating war upon other shinobi. The deceit and manipulation has gone on long enough. The amount of lives that you and your father have tried to destroy in order to get to where you are is unacceptable. Your father didn't succeed and neither will you. As the Hokage and the leader of Konoha, I WILL bring an end to this! And unlike you who uses deception to gain fake support, I have the support of my true allies."

"I will end what my father and our ancestors started, for I have awakened the true power of the Uchiha – MANGEKYOU SHARINGAN!" In just an instant, Sasuke's eyes transformed into the Uchiha's legendary eyes, but Naruto quickly averted his gaze from Sasuke's, knowing what those eyes were capable of.

Everyone else was confused and bewildered at what was happening.

"SASUKE! If you do this right now, the village could be destroyed in the process." Itachi warned.

"The Uchiha created Konoha and kept it safe for decades. If destruction is what it takes to ascend Konoha to its rightful state, we can re-build it again – this time in our true vision – one that will change the shinobi world forever." Sasuke was set in his goals. He did not expect Itachi to oppose him, but giving up was not an option any longer. He was so close to realising his clan's vision for the village. Madara carried out his vision in regards to Uzushiogakure in the past, creating a far greater village of Konoha in the wake of its destruction. If Sasuke would have to walk a similar path and apply force, then so be it. He was ready to eliminate those that tried to stop him from achieving a greater good for the village.

"This is bad. We can't fight here!" Itachi said to his students out of serious concern for the village, but at that moment, a masked man materialised out of thin air a little distance away from all of them.

"I won't let any more harm come Konoha's way! You're all coming with me!" He focused his eyesight on all four individuals, causing them to be pulled through portals to another dimension.

The masked man landed in this new dimension along with Naruto, Hinata, Itachi and Sasuke, a place that was completely barren and empty, with blocky uneven terrain. But it was the perfect place to settle the score without anyone or anything suffering collateral damage.

Minato, the one behind the mask, coughed up several mouthfuls of blood as he dropped to his knees. Even his eyes, the Mangekyou Sharingan, were bleeding profusely. But he forced himself back up to his feet. "This is all I can do for now. I leave the rest to the three of you." With those final words, he disappeared once again from this world.

"I appreciate it…dad." Naruto thanked his father under his breath but focused his attention back on Sasuke immediately, who was getting ready to strike.

"This is perfect. I can finish off all three of you at once right here. Witness…TRUE POWER!" A gigantic purple skeletal shape took form around Sasuke, a behemoth of unparalleled proportions and in its hands was a huge crossbow with an arrow composed purely of inextinguishable black flames. This was a combination of two of the Mangekyou Sharingan's most powerful abilities. It had enough power to destroy an entire village, and there were very few shinobi in the world who could oppose it.

"This attack is of a far greater scale than I've seen from anyone else using the Mangekyou Sharingan" Hinata looked in awe at the form that towered over them. "We must act fast!"

"Naruto, Hinata, it's time for us to fight back!" Itachi instructed both of his students just like old times.

Both Naruto and Hinata shook their heads in agreement.

"BYAKUGAN! TAILED BEAST MODE!" Hinata activated her Byakugan and shrouded her whole body with a lion cloak.

"UNLOCKING SEAL! ALL LIMITERS RELEASED!" Naruto jabbed his hand in his midsection and released the seal that kept his powers in check. Instantly his body started to absorb the nature's energy from the surroundings and a red aura flared around him.

"That's it! Now it's my turn to right the wrongs of the Uchiha – MANGEKYOU SHARINGAN!" To the shock of everyone around him, Itachi activated his own Mangekyou Sharingan and an ethereal orange humanoid form similar to Sasuke's took form around him. However, Itachi's guardian figure had a sword and shield in hand.

"What the!? I'm the only one who should have these eyes within the Uchiha. HOW DID YOU MANAGE TO AWAKEN THEM AS WELL?" Sasuke was in disbelief of what he was witnessing.

"Just like father sacrificed himself in order to awaken those eyes of yours…mother chose to do the same for me. Even though I did not want this, she felt there was no other choice. The Mangekyou Sharingan are eyes that naturally awaken within certain Uchiha in response to a great pain and suffering, so that he or she may be able to right the wrong that transpired. Yet a few Uchiha that gained access to it have since corrupted that process in order to deliberately force these eyes to awaken, just like father did with you, to abuse their powers for wrong purposes entirely. Mother knew what you were intending to do Sasuke and she did not wish for the incident surrounding Uzushiogakure to repeat with Konoha at the hands of the Uchiha. She did not want the Uchiha to destroy the peace that was created within Konoha through the collaborative effort of all the shinobi of this village. Thus, she made the ultimate sacrifice and entrusted me with the duty of protecting this village, even from the Uchiha clan if necessary."

Anger coursed through Sasuke's veins as he could not believe that even his mother had chosen to side against him when all he wanted was the best for Konoha. Thus he took aim with his crossbow and readied to fire his flaming arrow.

Itachi ordered his students to stand far back as he braced himself for Sasuke's attack. "Naruto, Hinata. I want you two to trust in me. As your teacher, I will protect you both at all cost. In return, I want you two to combine your strengths just like in the past and prepare an attack that will end this in one blow."

Both Naruto and Hinata looked at each other and nodded at their teacher at the same time. Reassured, Itachi faced forward and raised the shield held by his guardian.

"THIS IS FAREWELL, ITACHI!" Sasuke fired off his crossbow with full force and within moments, the arrow impacted the shield held by Itachi and exploded into a cornucopia of flames, engulfing and completely destroying Itachi's defence.

But Itachi had succeeded in his task of buying his students just enough time, and Sasuke was taken over by a momentary exhaustion after exerting his eyes to their limit and launching such a powerful attack. Neither he, nor Itachi had yet mastered the use of their new eyes, having awakened them only recently. This opened up an opportunity for a counterattack.

"NARUTO, HINATA, NOW!" Itachi shouted at the top of his lungs as he looked above him high in the sky and saw a huge black orb with giant rotor-like blades surrounding it, the winds emanating from it threatening to blow away everything in the vicinity.

Naruto and Hinata shared a knowing glance as they both held their hands up towards the sky to hold the technique in place.

"UZUMAKI STYLE!"

"HYUGA STYLE!"

"MASSIVE TAILED BEAST RASENSHURIKEN!" Both Naruto and Hinata brought their hands down at once and let loose their combined attack.

As a last resort, Sasuke managed to form a circular shield of his own and braced for impact. The attack collided with the skeletal figure protecting Sasuke and what followed was an explosion of unparalleled proportions that blew away everything in sight. It was like a raging storm that tore through all that stood in its path and even Sasuke, despite his eyes' newfound powers, was overwhelmed.

It lasted for some time, but eventually once the aftereffects of the collision calmed down, all three members of the team re-grouped once again.

"Is everyone alright?" Naruto asked, his head still shaking from the impact.

"Yes, I'm fine." Hinata replied.

"Me too. But I can't find Sasuke anywhere. Hinata, can you do a check?"

At Itachi's request, Hinata used her Byakugan to look around for Sasuke but shook her head as she could not find a trace of him. It was as though he had disappeared.

"Where could he disappear to? I know he's strong enough to at least withstand one attack but I can't even sense him anymore." Naruto looked around the now destroyed battlefield for any signs of the Uchiha when his father re-appeared once more next to them. "Dad, what's up?"

"I was back in Konoha and just moments ago something quite unbelievable happened. Sasuke appeared in Konoha for only a brief moment and disappeared along with the entire Uchiha clan. There is no trace of any of them left."

"WHAT!?" Both Naruto and Hinata yelled in unison.

"As I thought…Sasuke has somehow managed to gain the power of our father's eyes as well, the ability to teleport oneself and those around him to any destination previously seen and still remembered. I don't know how he did it but I think he may have decided to retreat after realising that he wasn't going to win that battle, at least not right now, without full mastery of his Mangekyou Sharingan."

"You're right. When I saw it, it reminded me of Fugaku's teleportation technique as well. It would appear that Sasuke has decided to leave Konoha entirely for now and has taken the Uchiha with him. But I have a feeling he'll be back someday to fulfil his vision." Minato explained before placing his hands on the shoulders of Naruto and Hinata. "Look at the bright side though. For now, I think Konoha will be at peace. I've broken Hiashi out of his genjutsu and explained to the Hyuga what happened to him. The others are starting to understand how Sasuke was manipulating them. You need to go address your people properly Naruto. The village is in unrest right now, but with your guidance, I think it should be able to recover again."

"He is right Naruto. You should face the village and bring everyone back on track. That is your duty as the Hokage." Itachi suggested with a smile.

"What's the matter Itachi-sensei? You look happy, despite your clan disappearing with your brother." Hinata asked out of concern.

"Indeed it has been difficult lately with the loss of my parents and now the rest of the clan, but I feel like I've regained something just as precious. After so many long years, our team was re-united once more. I'm glad I got to stand by the two of you again, just like old times. The members of Team Zero, my dear students, are some of my most precious people, and the village of Konoha, my family. To protect all of you, I will continue fighting until my very last breath."

"Thank you, sensei." Both Naruto and Hinata expressed their sincere gratitude after hearing of their teacher's heartfelt confession. "From now on let us protect the village, together."

Thus Naruto, Hinata and Itachi returned to Konoha with Minato's help – in order to face a new dawn.

* * *

 **Uzumaki household, 10 years later…**

A long time passed since the events that brought back Naruto and Hinata, who were now in their late thirties. They had settled back down in Konoha and once again begun a family together. Despite Hinata's previous status as a missing nin, she was pardoned by the authorities for helping save the village at a time of crisis. Her relationship with her clan was tenuous at first, but due to Naruto's insistence to her father and the passage of time, she was once again accepted back in as a member of the Hyuga clan. In the years that followed, Naruto and Hinata had a second child – Himawari Uzumaki, who was currently 8 years of age and always the centre of her entire family's undivided attention.

It was yet another peaceful evening in Konoha. Naruto was back home a little early today from work due to a family invitation he had to attend to and was currently sitting at the dining table with Himawari happily playing with her favourite cat plush toy on his lap. Hinata walked out of the kitchen with a large tray containing a tea kettle and several cups, along with a wide assortment of her own homemade cookies. Despite not being a professional baker any more, she still maintained her hobby of baking to this day. After all, it was something that her family appreciated.

Just as Hinata placed the tray on the table, there was a sound of the main door of the house opening that could be heard all the way from the living room. Boruto was finally back from a relatively long mission that spanned over a week.

"AN-CHAN!" Himawari jumped off of her father's lap in excitement and dashed towards the entrance of the house, only to meet her older brother in the corridor linking the main door to the living room. She wrapped her hands around his legs and gave him a welcome back hug.

Boruto rubbed his sister's head as a show of affection. "I'm glad to see you too Hima."

Having welcomed back her brother, Himawari now stood in front of him with a hand over her left eye, which was covered by an eye patch, and assumed a more solemn expression. "My dear brother…in your extended absence, this treacherous eye of mine has been spiralling out of control. I do not know how much longer I can keep it in check. You must have brought back with you a suitable offering that can at least temporarily quell this eye's hunger, correct? After all, you above everyone else understand my plight…for you too are the child of the King and Queen of the Abyss and plagued by the effects of the unbelievable power it grants."

Boruto frowned at his sister. She was up to her usual chuunibyou role play where she acted as though her parents were the rulers of some unknown world that contained an unspeakable power, and that she along with her brother were both born with this power sealed within their eyes. Ultimately it was all just a ploy to get more gifts from her brother.

"I don't know what you're talking about Hima."

"H-How could you say that? Surely you understand my suffering. I have been waiting patiently in hopes of my dear kindred to bring the cure that I so desperately need."

"Well, maybe if you took off this stupid eye patch, I would actually understand you." With one swift motion, Boruto removed the eye patch from around his sister's head and revealed a perfectly normal, azure blue eye, just like her father. "See, you're just fine!"

"NOOOOOO! How could you remove the great seal!? Without it, how will my eye's powers be kept in check?" Himawari asked as she grasped her exposed eye with both hands. "At least present me with my offering that you promised."

"Did I really promise anything?" Boruto decided to tease his little sister.

But unfortunately, his teasing went a little overboard as Himawari's eyes started to water and she looked up at her brother with the dreaded puppy dog eyes, finally dropping her little act. "A-An-chan, did you really not bring a present for me this time?"

"I was only kidding Hima. Has your brother ever returned home empty handed? Why don't you go upstairs and check in your room?"

Himawari's face lit up like a light bulb. "THANK YOU, AN-CHAN!" She squealed in joy before dashing off upstairs to her room.

It made Boruto happy just being able to see his sister's smile, which was something truly precious. He was also finally able to head over to the living room and take a seat at the dining table with his parents to get some much needed R&R.

"Welcome back dear. I assume everything went without a hitch?" Hinata asked her son as she walked over to him and wrapped him in a gentle embrace.

Boruto was once again right at home eating his mother's homemade cookies and feeling her warmth. Nothing could replace this peace that he felt at home, around his family.

"Of course it went without a hitch. When has he ever had any problems with missions? He is our son after all, the strongest shinobi in the world!" Naruto proclaimed ever so proudly.

"I don't know about the last bit, but everything did work out smoothly. I'll email you the mission report tomorrow if that's okay. I'm not feeling like doing it tonight."

"Don't worry about it. It's not like I'm sitting at my office eagerly waiting to read even more mission reports. Most of them are boring anyway and just a formality. Your missions are obviously high ranked and so a lot more interesting, but seriously, who wants to read a report from a D-ranked mission telling me how they managed to successfully catch some lady's runaway cat?" Naruto sighed in defeat, which made both Hinata and Boruto laugh at his plight. The Hokage's work wasn't always as glamorous as people made it out to be. "Anyway, I'm glad you're back safe and sound. Your shinobi career is coming along really nicely if I say so myself. The highest mission completion and success rates amongst all your peers. At this pace you'll overtake me and your mother not too long from now. It makes me proud as your father when everyone at the office is talking about how amazing of an asset you are to the village."

"I'm proud of your accomplishments too Boruto. Now if only we could perhaps see you start a family of your own sometime soon…"

"Kaa-chan, not this again!" Boruto became a little flustered at the mention of this topic. It was embarrassing for him to talk to his parents about it and they brought it up every now and then ever since his eighteenth birthday.

"Your mother is right Boruto. We'd like to see some grandkids sooner or later. In our family lineage, most of us had kids pretty early on. Not saying that you need to do the same, but you gotta tell us if you have your eyes on someone. As your parents, we'll be giving the approval first. If you're the strongest, she has to be the greatest!" Naruto demanded out loud.

"Don't take your father seriously Boruto. You know how he loves to joke around." Hinata quickly cut in as she saw her son looking increasingly flustered. "We just want you to be happy, so as long as it's someone you love, that's what we want."

"Okay, okay, I get it, but I'm not invested in that kind of stuff right now. So can we please change the topic?"

"Sure. By the way, you do remember that tomorrow is the start of the spring sparring festival within the Hyuga? So we were all invited for dinner and to stay over at the clan house tonight." Hinata reminded her son.

"Yeah I remember. I tried to make it back in time for that."

Naruto became curious when the topic of the Hyuga came up. "Speaking of the Hyuga, you do know that the old man has been going around telling people that you will become the successor to the Hyuga's throne as its rightful heir now that you've finally come of age. Did you talk to him about this?"

"WHAT!? Are you serious? He's been nagging me about it for a while now but I've made it explicitly clear to him that I have no interest in becoming the Hyuga clan leader, or taking on any kind of long term leadership role for that matter. I like things the way they are right now. Why the heck is he doing this?"

"Well he is kind of getting old and he's been running as the clan leader for so long. I can see why he'd want you to succeed the clan though. I think most clans would want someone as powerful like you at their helm, especially the Hyuga, who have a reputation to keep as the strongest clan in Konoha." Naruto explained as he took a sip of his tea.

"But I don't care about that stuff. I told him about it too. This is kind of really annoying me right now. I'm not going to the dinner tonight if he's gonna be like that!"

"Boruto, your grandfather loves. That is why he wishes to entrust the Hyuga in your hands. He has always been very protective of the clan's future. The fact that he sees you as its future leader over all other candidates goes to show truly how much he believes in you. I wouldn't take it in a negative way." As always, Hinata was the voice of reason within the family. "I'll have a proper talk with him about it myself. He is getting old, so you need to be a bit more considerate towards him."

"I get that and I won't hold any resentment, but I want him to know that I'm serious as well. I've made up my mind not to go tonight. That's that."

"Okay, well, if that is what you want, then I understand. But you must speak to him at a later date once I've had a talk with him myself."

As the conversation between her parents and brother was ongoing, Himawari ran back into the living room, having had her fun with her new toy. "If An-chan's not going to the Hyuga compound, then I'm not going either."

"But Hima…"

"I don't care. I'm staying with An-chan." Himawari had made up her mind as well, and once her mind was set on something, especially in regards to her brother, there was barely any changing it. The Uzumaki siblings shared that similar trait amongst themselves.

"Ho boy, I think the old man might go into depression when he sees neither of his grandchildren there." Naruto joked, to Hinata's dismay.

"But Hima, I haven't cooked any food tonight since I didn't expect anyone to be staying at home. This will be a bit of a problem."

"Don't worry about it Kaa-chan. I'll take Hima out to dinner and take care of her. You and Tou-chan can go have fun at the Hyuga compound."

"Are you sure?" Hinata asked once more to which Boruto reassured her again. "In that case can you take care of Himawari tomorrow as well? I'll be a little busy with the sparring festival at the clan house, so it'd be a great help."

"No problem. Hima, maybe the two of us can hit Ichiraku's ramen. I haven't been there in a while. I heard they added a new ramen flavour to their menu recently. We'll have a lot of fun."

"Sure An-chan, I'll tag along wherever."

"H-Hinata…maybe I should also-"

"NO!" Before Naruto could even finish his sentence, his wife cut him off with a stern look, knowing where this was going.

Just the thought of his children going to Ichiraku's ramen and him not being able to tag along brought tears to his eyes. Both Boruto and Himawari couldn't help but chuckle uncontrollably at their father's plight.

Regardless, the time came for Naruto and Hinata to take their leave. Boruto and Himawari were at the door to see their parents off.

"Boruto, I'll be heading over to the office directly from the Hyuga compound tomorrow morning. Can you come meet me at lunch tomorrow? I have something important to discuss with you there." Naruto requested.

"Sure. I'll see you then."

"Alright you two. Take care and behave. I'll see you tomorrow." Hinata waved goodbye to their children. Thus both husband and wife departed for the Hyuga compound together, leaving their children at home.

"Alright Hima, it's just you and me, so let's hit the streets together and have some fun!" Boruto said to his sister excitedly.

"Let's gooooooooooooooooo!" Himawari jumped on to her brother's back and replied with equal enthusiasm.

Before long, both brother and sister were out into the streets of Konoha as well.

* * *

 _Greetings! I think this is the first time we've talked. I hope I can have your attention for just a moment. It won't be long. Surely if you're here, then that means you're truly dedicated._

 _So, Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuga Hinata reunited at last and their family living happily together. It was quite the tale, huh? Next time, I suppose it will be the epilogue - **The** **Uzumaki Family's Farewell.**_

 _However, something seems remiss. My calculations suggest that something's not quite right. I think I know what it is. Although everything seems to have ended well, I don't think our heroes ever realised who the true enemy was. The Uchiha are…maybe not quite the answer. They are a victim of causality. Perhaps the real threat was somewhere far closer, manifesting before their very eyes that they did not ever consider…a threat that has the potential to change everything._

 _But I wouldn't worry too much about it. After all, that is why I'm here. The Hero of Justice exists to save the world._

 _As my mother always says – with every end, a new beginning. In the wake of every disaster, an opportunity for renewal._

 _I will see you next time._


	52. The Uzumaki Family's Farewell

**The Uzumaki Family's Farewell**

* * *

Boruto took his little sister out to dinner at Ichiraku ramen. Through their father, both of them had gained somewhat of an acquired taste for ramen and they joined their father on his ramen eating escapades every now and then. Tonight, they decided to visit on their own, much to their father's dismay, who was stuck at a formal dinner with the Hyuga. He didn't hate it or anything, but for Naruto no food could ever compare to ramen.

While eating, Boruto and Himawari laughed at the thought of their father sulking at dinner, not being able to have ramen when his children were at Ichiraku having the time of their lives. Once they were finished with dinner, Boruto took Himawari around town to buy whatever desserts she wished for. He knew his sister had a bit of a sweet tooth. She opted for ice cream and just as she wished, Boruto bought her the majestic and legendary "Quintuple Deluxe", a cone with 5 stacks of different flavours. The topping on the cone was so large that it wobbled dangerously out of control, but Himawari with her ninja reflexes was able to keep it balanced and licked away at her heart's content while sitting on her brother's shoulders as he walked slowly back home.

The siblings shared a truly tight knit bond with another. Himawari, being the youngest member of the family and one who was raised under both of her parents' watchful eyes was always the centre of their attention. Given that Naruto was not there at Boruto's young age, he spoiled his daughter senseless with all the love and affection he could muster. He was the epitome of an overprotective and doting father. Hinata tried to bring some semblance of balance to that by teaching her daughter discipline through rigorous training, but even she at heart was the kind of mother who loved showing her daughter affection first and foremost.

But perhaps the one who spoilt Himawari most was her older brother. Boruto loved his little sister and had always helped take care of her since a young age. He played with her growing up, trained her in the ninja arts and granted her whatever she wished for, even in secret if their parents did not necessarily approve of it. He cherished her and in return Himawari loved her brother with all her heart. She loved her whole family of course, but her brother held a special place in her heart as she was the closest to him more than anyone else in her life. The familial ties that bound the Uzumaki siblings together were truly unbreakable.

Once home, Boruto made sure that his sister brushed her teeth as usual and tucked her into bed, before taking a late night shower and finally hitting the hay himself. It had been a long day of travelling back to Konoha and all he needed now was a good shut eye to relieve the stress. But just as he was about to drift off into dreamland, he heard the door to his room slowly creak open.

Boruto sat up on his bed and looked over, only to find his sister standing at the entrance, grasping the teddy bear he had brought for her as a gift. "What's the matter Hima? Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"An-chan…toilet…"

"Don't tell me you're still scared of going to the toilet at night by yourself." Boruto was about to complain but he could see tears forming under his sister's eyes which instantly stopped him in his tracks. "Alright, alright, fine, I'll accompany you to the toilet. Let's go."

A minute later Boruto was leaning against the wall outside the toilet, waiting for his sister to finish. He sighed, finding it hard to believe that the child of the Hokage needed to be escorted to the toilet.

"An-chan, are you still there?" Himawari asked from behind the door.

"Yes, I'm still here. Besides, can't you just use your Byakugan to check?"

"Oh yeah, that's true. I had forgotten about that."

After a few minutes Himawari came out, looking both relieved and happy. But as Boruto was about to head off to his room, she grabbed the hem of his shirt.

"What's the matter now Hima?" He asked.

"An-chan…can I sleep with you today?" She questioned with the usual puppy dog eyes that she knew he couldn't deny.

"Seriously Hima? You're not a little child…ALRIGHT FINE! Just for tonight though."

Without even wasting a second, Himawari dashed off to her brother's room with joy and jumped into bed, tucking herself in comfortably under the duvet.

Boruto got back into bed as well, finally ready to get some shut eye now that his sister was happy. "Good night."

"An-chan, tell me a story."

"Hima, I already let you stay with me, so just go to sleep. I'm tired and I need to get some rest." Boruto replied and pulled the duvet over his head in order to block out the dim moonlight coming in through the blinds that he left slightly open for his sister. A couple of seconds passed yet there was no response from her. This was unusual. By now she would at least attempt to beg and plead him for a bit, which could only mean one thing.

Boruto quickly turned around only to find his sister's eyes getting all puffy. "GOODNESS ME! Give your brother a break here man. Fine, you win again little sis! I'll tell you a story, but you have to promise to go to sleep after that!" Boruto begrudgingly accepted. He didn't have it in him to ever say no to his younger sister, and making her cry would be an act he could never forgive himself for. That's how precious she was to him.

"Thanks as always, An-chan!"

"Alright then, since you want to hear a story, how about one of a very old legend?"

Himawari nodded excitedly as she stared at her brother with anticipation.

"Have heard of the samurai before?"

"Samurai? You mean like the ones from the storybooks? The fictional people with the swords? I don't know much else."

"Well in that case, how about I tell you a little bit more about the samurai?" Boruto asked, to his sister's instant approval as a slightly mischievous idea crossed him. "There are legends passed on through the ages that foretell the story of a group of people called the samurai who live in a distant world. They are said to have special superhuman powers just like the shinobi, except they chose to focus all of those powers into a sword – their singular weapon of choice. These swords are special, unlike anything used by ninjas and their skill with the sword is untouchable. I'm sure you've heard at least some of that right?"

Himawari nodded.

"But here's what the stories don't tell you." Boruto's tone suddenly became very deep and foreboding. "The samurai are ghastly beings that feed upon the essence of the shinobi. That is how they get their powers."

Himawari let out an audible "eeep" as she curled up into a ball in fear.

"It is said that they wear these huge metallic armours, so you can hear the distant clanging of metals as they approach. On their helmets they have these distinctive curved horns and if you look closely, their faces are shrouded by darkness. The only features you can see on their face are their two glowing white eyes. They are said to operate deep in the night where they lie in wait for a shinobi let their guard down, at which point the samurai will approach them from their blind side and tear open their belly with one clean swing of the sword. As the shinobi is writhing on the ground trying to hold on to their entrails, the samurai will use the opportunity to drag that person into the samurai's world, where the shinobi will then be consumed, never to be heard from again." Boruto finished the grim story of the samurai and allowed for a few seconds to pass for the tension to build. "And do you know what the most disturbing part of this whole legend is? It's the fact that the samurai like to target young shinobi below the age of 10…the ones who are unable to properly defend themselves…"

Almost on cue, a strong gust of wind blew past their house at that moment, causing the metal gate at their front yard to rattle a couple of times. And that was the straw that broke the camel's back.

A being that stalked shinobi – check.

A being that was only active at night – double check.

A being whose imminent arrival was preceded by the sound of metals rattling – triple check.

A being that specifically targeted children below the age of 10 – quadruple check.

"EYAAAAAAAAA!" Himawari nearly jumped 5 feet in the air as a trillion terrifying thoughts raced through her mind. When she landed back down in bed, she pulled the duvet over her head and clung on to her brother's midsection for dear life.

Boruto could barely hold his giggle in. This was a recurring thing between them. Himawari would always bug him to tell stories, so given that she was scared of ghosts, spectres and all things otherworldly, he would make up a spooky story on the spot to scare her. It was hilarious to see her reactions. But at the same time, he would feel bad if he scared her too badly. So he would calm her down right afterwards in those instances.

"Come on Hima, it was all a joke. The samurai are just folklore. They aren't real. Even if they were, they were probably just normal people and existed so long ago that they've now become a part of legend. All the other stuff about them feeding on shinobi was stuff I made up to spook you a little."

After hearing her brother's explanation, Himawari peeked the top of her head out from under the duvet, far enough such that she could look her brother in the eye. "Are you telling the truth, baka onii-chan?" She asked while pouting.

"Of course. Would I ever lie to you? Besides, if anything were to ever come after you, your onii-chan will always be there to protect you! So let's get some sleep now okay?"

No matter how scared she was, Himawari always felt safe whenever her brother reassured her. Thus, she snuggled up close to him and the two siblings fell soundly asleep for the night.

 **The next morning…**

Himawari woke up only to find herself alone in the bed. Her brother had already gone. So she went to the bathroom to get refreshed before making her way downstairs to the kitchen. Sure enough she found her brother making breakfast by himself.

"Good timing. I was about to go wake you up in a bit. I just started making omelettes for breakfast. You're cool with that right?"

"I love omelettes!"

"Alright, perfect. Go sit at the table and I'll bring them over in just a bit."

Himawari did as she was told and within minutes, some delicious golden brown omelettes were served. As the Uzumaki siblings sat at the dining table to have breakfast, Himawari grabbed the bottle of ketchup to spread the sauce in an artistic fashion over her omelette.

"An-chan, look at this." She urged her brother to check out her food, feeling proud of her artistic vision. On top of her omelette was a cartoonish rendition of her brother's face, drawn using tomato ketchup.

"Wow, is that supposed to be me? That's really impressive. Thanks Hima." Boruto replied, feeling genuinely amazed by his little sister's quick handiwork. "Now then, let's eat."

Thus Boruto dug in to his breakfast. While on mission, he missed just being able to sit peacefully at home and have food with his family. It was a feeling of tranquillity that simply could not be compared. However, as he was eating his food, he noticed that his sister was still sitting there with a knife and fork in hand, not touching her food.

"What's the matter Hima? Why aren't you eating?"

Himawari stared at him with a look of sadness. "But I can't bring myself to eat you, An-chan."

Boruto burst out into laughter at the remark. "Oh Hima, you're such a dolt sometimes. An adorable little dolt. Here, let me help." Boruto used his knife to cut up the omelette, much to his sister's chagrin and fed her the first slice.

The first bite was enough to make Himawari forget about all her woes given how delicious it was and she continued eating the rest while making small talk with her brother. After they were done with their breakfast and Boruto cleaned up everything, the two stepped outside into their backyard to do some light training. Whenever the opportunity arose, Boruto would teach his little sister all sorts of techniques, as she was incredibly quick to pick up on anything she was taught. Even the Hyuga considered her to be one of the most gifted members in their clan's history since she activated her Byakugan by the age of 4 and now, by the age of 8, was proficient in many of the clan's more complicated techniques. Not a surprise given her parents. It also helped that she had some of the most proficient practitioners of the gentle fist in her mother, aunt, brother and grandfather all teaching her at the same time.

"An-chan, today I want to show you something really cool that mommy and daddy have been teaching me together for some time now. I kept it a secret from you until I could do it properly."

"Hoooo…you've got my curiosity. Show me what you've learned." At this point, little could surprise Boruto when it came to his sister. He knew how capable she was, but even he did not expect what he was about to see.

Himawari clenched both her fists and held them slightly in forward. She then closed her eyes and started to concentrate her whole mind into this one technique, a look of determination spreading across her face. It was almost like she was a completely different person than her usual self. In response, a deep blue aura formed around both of her fists. As she focused her mind even further, the aura thickened and started to take form.

Boruto's eyes widened at the shape of Himawari's technique. This was all too familiar to him. Sure enough, with every passing second the aura morphed around her hands until eventually it formed two distinct shapes around her fists – one the head of a majestic lion and another the head of a menacing dragon.

"Gentle Step: Fists of the Dragon Lion!" As Himawari completed her technique, she stood while holding in her hands an amalgamation of her mother's "Twin Lion Fist" and her father's "Twin Dragon Fist". It was quite the sight to behold – an incredible and complex technique created by a mere child.

Boruto was simply lost for words.

Himawari defused the technique and returned back to her usual cheerful self as she skipped over to her brother happily. "So, what did you think? I surprised you didn't I? That's why I kept it a secret from you."

Her question snapped Boruto out of his temporary trance and he looked at his sister in awe. "Wow…Hima, I don't know what to say. To think you not only mastered one of our parents' signature techniques, but also combined them. That is amazing!"

"Thanks. It took me some time to learn that. Mommy and daddy had to give me lessons together over many weekends. It was a little difficult but a lot of fun learning from them both at the same time. They're pretty strong together."

"Well you can say that again. I've seen those two do some pretty crazy stuff back when I was your age. But man, they taught you so much already. You know what? I bet you're good enough to learn our family's signature technique. You think you're up for it?"

"Of course! What is it!? What is it!?"

Boruto outstretched his palm and in an instant a blue spiralling ball formed within it.

"RASENGAN!" Himawari yelled, practically gleaming with excitement at this point. She knew that technique all too well. It was considered the Uzumaki family's specialty and she had been waiting forever to learn it.

"Alright then, I don't think I need to tell you this but the Rasengan is an incredibly complex technique and it'll take a lot of effort to master. But I think you're ready for it. So let's get your training started, shall we?"

Himawari nodded with every ounce of energy in her body and thus Boruto started to teach her the very basics of the Rasengan from the ground up. The two trained through the whole morning until eventually around midday Hinata returned home.

"Kaa-chan, you're already back?" Boruto asked curiously. "I thought you were going to spend the day helping out the clan for the sparring festival."

"Well yes, but I took a quick break to get back home and make lunch for your father. I couldn't do it earlier at the Hyuga compound."

"Man, your dedication to Tou-chan is something else. It's not like it would be the end of the world if you didn't make him lunch for one day. I'm sure he could eat out somewhere."

"That won't do Boruto. You know how your father is. If I don't make him a proper nutritious lunch, he'd just end up going to Ichiraku's every day and only have ramen. Even if he is the Hokage with a lot of responsibilities, he can be very negligent when it comes to himself. As his wife I have to be diligent and look after him in that regard. I'm sure you'll understand one day when you find your own significant other."

"Okay, okay, you love him. I get it."

As Hinata started preparing lunch for Naruto in a hurry, Boruto offered to lend her a helping hand while Himawari continued training outside. In the end they ended up creating two bento boxes, one for Naruto and another for Boruto.

"Your father wanted to talk to you at lunch right? So take both of these and have lunch with him together. He always tells me how he really appreciates any heart to heart moments he gets to share with you."

"Is that so?"

"Indeed. As you already know, your father grew up without the influence of his parents around him. It left a big rift in his heart as he never got to experience what it was like having parents around to share one's everyday experiences with. That is why he always tries his best to fulfil the role of a father properly when it comes to you and Himawari, even while juggling his responsibilities as Hokage."

"Well, he can be a bit ham-fisted at times and a little brash, but I appreciate his dedication towards his family despite being the Hokage. I think he's pretty cool dad." Boruto admitted wholeheartedly given all the fun times he got to spend with his father over the years ever since they met. "That being said, I also really appreciate having someone around with whom I can honestly speak to at all times, no matter how sensitive or trivial the matter. It's nice to have someone so caring."

"I suppose your father has become very perceptive over the years, huh?"

"I wasn't talking about him. I was talking about you Kaa-chan." Boruto clarified his statement before grabbing the lunch boxes and disappearing like the wind.

Hinata was a little surprised by her son's final words but they brought a genuine smile to her face. It felt so nice to be appreciated. She was blessed to have such a lovely family.

As requested, Boruto arrived at the Hokage tower in time for his father's allotted lunch break. Once there, Naruto decided to take his son to the roof of the Hokage tower so that they could have lunch together in peace without anyone interrupting them.

As Boruto took the first bite from his bento, he gave his father a concerned look. "What's the deal with meeting up at lunch with so much urgency? Couldn't we have talked over dinner? Besides, on the few occasions you called me up to the rooftop of the Hokage tower, it's always been about something serious. WAIT…you aren't gonna try to give me THE talk again, are you?"

Although that wasn't quite on Naruto's agenda, he was reminded of how he always tried to skirt around that particular topic and when he was forced to finally confront it, how terrible the attempt at an explanation went. "OH SNAP, I completely forgot about that. I failed to explain anything properly at all those years ago and promptly decided to erase it from memory. I need to do it correctly this ti-"

"Okay no, stop. Not necessary. I'm 18 years old. I know how babies are made. Mom did the job for you a long time ago after you failed." Boruto explained in a somewhat embarrassed tone. "But hey, I guess in a couple of years you can try again with Hima."

Naruto clutched his head in despair at the thought. "NOOOOOOOO! Don't say that! My sweet little baby. She doesn't need to know about such things. She must remain pure and innocent forever."

"You know, she has to get married and have children of her own someday right?"

At this point Naruto looked like he was going into anaphylactic shock from just hearing those words. But his expression quickly changed into one of murderous rage. "I swear if some guy ever looks at her funny, I'll chop his balls off and feed them to the dogs. You better believe it."

Boruto was legitimately freaked out at how serious his father looked. He had never seen such a depraved look on his face before. He knew how much his father loved his little sister, but this was a little scary. "O-Okay…uhhh…we'll get over that hump when the time comes. For now can we talk about something else?"

"Sure. By the way, did I tell you that I've decided to appoint your mother into my office?"

"What? Really?"

"Yeah, I mean she's done a lot of community services for the village over the years since she returned. She's even been fully accepted within the Hyuga. Her defection is more or less forgotten at this point. Plus Himawari has grown up quite a bit. That means I can finally get someone with your mother's intelligence and power into an important position at the office. I've talked to the others working with me and they all agree. I'm going to get your mother to be my secretary. She understands me best after all. It'll be a great help in running Konoha."

Boruto stared at his father with deadpanned eyes. "Are you sure you're not just hiring her to do most of your office work for you?"

"Uhhh…no…o-of course not. W-Whatever made you think that?"

"Don't firkin' lie to me old man. I know what you're up to."

"Guilty as charged."

Both father and son burst out into laughter at their joking exchange. They enjoyed poking fun at one another given the opportunity.

"Alright, I think it's about time you talked to about what you really called me here for. I'm sure you didn't bring me out here just to tell me about your latest employee."

Naruto's expression became stoic and hardened after the enquiry, as one might expect from the Hokage. "Indeed that is not what I called you here for. I need to discuss something of the utmost importance with you, something that has the potential of making or breaking this village. This is in regards to the string of incidents involving a certain individual attacking Konoha shinobi out on missions. The situation has reached a breaking point. Our forces are being isolated and systematically being wiped out to weaken the village. The information has spread and morale is at an all-time low. Many are afraid to even go out on missions in fear of getting attacked. That being said, we've finally identified the person who is behind the attacks. As suspected, it is indeed Sarada Uchiha, the child of Sasuke Uchiha."

Boruto's eyes widened after hearing that name. "So I guess she's doing her father's bidding and wants revenge against the village for what happened 10 years ago."

"It is more than just revenge. They're trying to weaken Konoha's forces for an eventual siege. Here's the proof." Naruto took out a scroll and handed it to Boruto.

As Boruto read through the contents of the scroll, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "You have got to be kidding me."

"No, it's real. The Uchiha have declared a battle against Konoha. Their proposed location is the Great Canyon near one of the borders with Kumogakure. If we do not accept, they intend to launch a direct assault on the village itself."

"You're not thinking of taking this bait are you? This could be a decoy. They may very well be trying to lure away our forces so that the village is easy picking. This is the same kind of thing that happened with Kirigakure's invasion that you prevented, right?"

"I know that, but at the same time we cannot risk a confrontation within the village itself, which may leave it in shambles. Even if this may be a longshot, we need to engage the Uchiha away from the village and finally settle this score that was left unsettled 10 years ago. I wish they would opt for a peaceful solution, but at this point we have no choice but to fight back for our won survival." Naruto explained. "So this is my plan. I'm going to split Konoha's forces approximately in half. One half, led by me and my peers will remain in Konoha and protect it in case the Uchiha try to attack the village directly. The other half will form a large battalion that will head to the Great Canyon to confront the Uchiha and end their threat. This way, we'll have both sides covered. The Uchiha do not have the manpower to defeat either unit. And the person I want leading the charge against the Uchiha is you Boruto."

"Me? Are you sure? Wouldn't it be better for you to choose someone more experienced?"

"Normally under these kinds of circumstances, as the Hokage I myself would lead the charge against the Uchiha. But given that I need to remain in the village in order to ensure its safety, I need someone who can act as my proxy. I need someone I can trust with the lives of so many of my people in this mission. That someone has to be powerful, capable and well accepted by their peers. I can see none more qualified than you. You're one of the most powerful ninjas under my command, and whether you accept it or not, there are many within Konoha, including your peers, who wish for you to be the next in line to become Hokage given your abilities. Your peers – the ones who will be fighting alongside you, believe in you. And most importantly, I believe in you. That is why I've made this decision, not as your father, but as the Hokage. I sincerely hope you'll accept. This request is of the utmost importance to the village."

Boruto contemplated hard for a minute of the implications of his role as a leader. It would undoubtedly be the most important mission that he has ever taken part in. Even though he was initially hesitant given the overwhelming responsibility, after much deliberation, the young Uzumaki regained his resolve. "If you believe I'm the one for the job, then I will believe in your judgement as the Hokage. I accept and I'll do everything in my power to ensure the safety of this village and its people."

Naruto was ecstatic to hear those words. "Thank you Boruto. You don't understand how glad I am to hear that. Of course, you won't be alone out there. I will assign a number of highly experienced and battle-hardened shinobi to help you lead Konoha's forces into battle. I've also talked to our allies in Amegakure and they have agreed to lend us a helping hand. Your teammate will be one of those who will join in the battle."

"You mean Yahiko?" Boruto asked, to which Naruto nodded. Boruto was part of a special team with Yahiko that was created years ago by Naruto and Nagato as a sign of alliance between their two villages. This led to both Boruto and Yahiko spending a lot of time in each other's villages, in the process becoming very close friends and rivals alike. This made him feel a lot more relieved right now knowing that his closest ally would be standing next to him during this major conflict.

"Alright, since everything is now set in motion, it is time that we start preparing. Much is at stake here."

 **Sometime later, day of departure…**

The time had finally arrived to engage the Uchiha. Preparations were complete. The battalion was formed. Everyone was ready to depart.

Boruto was in his full mission gear and currently stood outside of their house with his mother and sister seeing him off.

Hinata as expected had a very concerned look on her face. "I wish I could have gone with you to help, but your father wants me to stay in Konoha."

"He's right. You need to help Tou-chan protect this village if something were to happen. It is our home after all."

"But I'm worried about you Boruto. This is such a dangerous mission."

"Don't worry about it Kaa-chan. I'll be fine. Trust me."

Even though she was worried senseless, her son's words and his determined look pacified her somewhat. He was a fully-fledged adult now. She needed to have faith in him.

Boruto kneeled down in front of his sister and patted her head gently, who looked equally as concerned as her mother. "I'm sorry Hima but I don't think I'll be able to bring you a gift this time."

Himawari shook her head left to right. "It's okay. I just want you to return home soon. That'll be the best gift for me."

Boruto nodded wholeheartedly and got back up, preparing himself mentally. It was time.

"BORUTO UZUMAKI, HEADING OUT!"

Thus, like the wind, Boruto was gone.

 **Several days later, after the conflict…**

Naruto rushed through the streets of Konoha with his aides at tow. Konoha's forces had returned. They were reportedly victorious. Yet, all was not right.

When Naruto arrived at the entrance to the village, he gasped in horror. Beaten, battered and bloody bodies were strewn about everywhere. Medics were rushing in to tend to those in serious need. Screams of pain and chaos permeated as far as he could see. It was a scene from a nightmare.

Even though Konoha had stopped the Uchiha's advance, even though they were technically victorious, the heavy toll they suffered in the process made it all seem pointless. This was nothing but a pyrrhic victory.

Naruto scanned through the people until his eyes fell on Konohamaru, who was writhing in pain from all the injuries he had suffered. Naruto quickly rushed over to him and helped him up. "KONOHAMARU, WHAT HAPPENED HERE!? TELL ME!"

"I'm sorry, Naruto-niichan. I'm so sorry." Konohamaru barely managed to squeak out in between his tears.

"What's going on? Why are you apologizing?"

"Forgive me…for I failed…to protect him…please…forgive me…"

At this point Konohamaru was like a broken record, apologizing over and over again. There was no point in asking him anything.

Thus Naruto looked over and saw Yahiko on the ground clutching his left eye, while medics tended to him. He rushed over to his son's teammate in the hopes of getting some answers.

"YAHIKO, are you okay!? What happened here!? You have to tell me!"

Yahiko looked up at Naruto with guilt overcoming him. He wished he could shed tears, but a deep vertical sword slash had completely destroyed his left eye and he could barely see with his other one given all the blood and pain. But he knew he needed to give some answers, no matter how difficult it would be to do so. Naruto deserved to know.

"I'm sorry Hokage-sama. The mission turned into an absolute mess. We expected to face the Uchiha, but they were not alone. We were ambushed by Kumogakure's forces. They were assisting the Uchiha. We did not see it coming."

Naruto was lost for words. How could this be? Why would Kumogakure get involved? Was this revenge? All those years ago when he refused to invade them and take over when they were weak, was it all coming back to haunt him now?

"But that wasn't the worst part." Yahiko continued in between his deep breaths. "Sarada Uchiha…she was too powerful. She was almost inhuman. She fought with pure bloodlust in her eyes and tore through our forces with power far beyond our comprehension. I lost my eye because of her. With her as well as the Uchiha and Kumogakure, we were pushed to our very limits. But then Boruto…"

Naruto's heart nearly jumped to his throat at the mention of his son. "Where is Boruto?"

"He is the reason why we're even here right now. He protected us…saved us from demise. I had never seen him use such power before. He singlehandedly tipped the balance back in our favour by pushing back the Uchiha and Kumogakure. He went head to head against the menace that was Sarada Uchiha. But…" Yahiko clenched his fist and eye shut in anguish of what he was about to say. "He ultimately fell to her in battle. Forgive me Hokage-sama…but Boruto is no more."

Time seemed to come to a standstill as Naruto dropped to his knees in utter despair. He was finding it hard to even breathe. Everything seemed hopeless. This could not be happening. This could not be real. What had he done? He had sent his son…to his own death.

"Hokage-sama…as painful as it is for me to do…but this is all we could bring back of him. He gave this to me as a parting gift, but I cannot bring myself to accept it. I failed him." Yahiko could not even bare to look at what he was handing to his best friend's father.

Naruto nearly threw up at the sight of what was inside the container. No parent should ever have to accept this.

With utter horror and despair, Naruto accepted the final memento left of his son – one of his eyes.

* * *

 _Did you think that the story was over? No...not quite yet. Though it was indeed a form of epilogue for the Uzumaki family. It was their farewell, in quite the literal way. Their family as you know it would never be the same again after that day. Even though Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga were reunited, the challenges they were going to face from then onward would only escalate exponentially. When one tie is rekindled, another is shattered._

 _I have to say though, as much as I despise that man, were it not for his "death", I wouldn't exist. So in a weird, perverse kind of way, I suppose I should be thankful towards that lunatic nutcase known as Sarada Uchiha. I can't believe I just said that…ugh._

 _Regardless, I did mention to you about a disaster last time. Did you think I was speaking in mere jest? I was not. So let me tell you this - the entire shinobi world at large would feel the repercussions of the events that transpired on that day with the loss of "Boruto Uzumaki"._

 _Perhaps you'll understand…next time._


	53. The Eye of another World

**The Eye of another World**

* * *

 **Hokage tower…**

Naruto was at his desk in his office, his head planted in his hands. In the 10 years he had been Hokage, he never felt so helpless. In the nearly 40 years he was alive, he had never felt so defeated and broken. Even if he wanted to form thoughts in his head, he couldn't make sense of anything. His eyes had long dried up of tears, but the sadness inside only overcame him further by the second. He felt sick to his stomach from despair. This feeling, this thought that he'll never be able to see his beloved son again, was too much to bear.

The people around him did not know how to respond. They had never seen the ever cheerful and determined Hokage so utterly demoralised. They understood his pain of losing one of his loved ones and wanted to provide support, but Naruto did not seem to be responding to anything at all.

Shikamaru, Naruto's closest advisor and friend decided to step forward in order to try and help. "Naruto, please, you've got to get it together. You're the Hokage and the village needs you at a time like this. Seeing you in this state is seriously demoralising for all the shinobi of the village."

There was no response.

"The village has suffered a heavy toll and everyone is shaken. You need to stand strong Naruto, as our leader, no matter how difficult it is. If you let us, we can help you."

Once again, his words seemed to fall into deaf ears.

"NARUTO! I understand how painful it is for you right now, but you have to at least let us help-" Before Shikamaru could finish, Naruto got up from his chair in the blink of an eye and grabbed his advisor's collar from across the desk.

"YOU'RE TELLING ME YOU UNDERSTAND HOW I'M FEELING RIGHT NOW!? DID YOU LOSE YOUR CHILD AS WELL!? DO YOU KNOW THE FEELING OF A FATHER THAT WILL NEVER GET TO SEE HIS SON AGAIN!? ARE YOU A PARENT WHO HAS TO LIVE THE REST OF HIS LIFE KNOWING THAT YOU SENT YOUR CHILD TO HIS DEMISE!? HE DIDN'T EVEN WANT TO BE A LEADER, YET HE DID IT ALL BECAUSE HE BELIEVED IN MY JUDMENT! HE SACRIFICED HIMSELF FOR THIS VILLAGE, DOING MY JOB, CARRYING A BURDEN I IMPARTED ON HIM! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO LIVE KNOWING ALL THAT!? TELL ME SHIKAMARU! ANSWER ME THAT!"

The people in the office were stunned silent by the Hokage's outburst. They had never seen him take out his anger on anyone else like this, let alone his advisor.

"I…I'm sorry Naruto. I didn't mean it like that. I just wanted to help, as a friend…"

At that moment, the door to the office flung open and Hinata rushed in with Himawari right on her tail. "Naruto-kun, what's going on? I heard the battalion has returned, but the village is in disarray."

One look at her husband's face and Hinata could tell something was seriously wrong. His eyes were bloodshot and his face overcome with sorrow. This must be…

"Naruto-kun…where is Boruto?" Hinata asked, her voice now shaking in fear.

Naruto couldn't bring himself to answer his wife and took a step back behind his desk. What would he tell her? How would he tell her?

But Hinata only closed the distance even more. "Boruto…where is my son!?"

Naruto could do nothing but close his eyes and shake his head left to right. He then pointed his finger at the small container at his desk.

Hinata's mind went completely blank. All she could do was open the container that Naruto pointed towards. It took her far longer than normal to perform such a simple task given that her own hands were shaking out of control, but once she did open it, one look inside sent her entire world in a tail spin. Naruto's reaction and this finally confirmed her deepest and darkest fear. The weight of the revelation was too much for her and she fell to the floor, unconscious.

"HINATA!" Naruto rushed over to his wife and shook her lightly, but she was out cold. He checked her pulse and found it to be normal. A medic quickly arrived at the scene, who after performing several checks also suggested that she was just unconscious from the shock and everything else was fine.

Naruto sighed a breath of relief, even if for just a moment, but his concerns were only going to get much worse from there on.

Himawari tugged at her father to get his attention, so far only observing everything that had been going on. But now she wanted answers. "Daddy, where is brother?"

It was a very simple question, but one that dug in like a nail through Naruto's heart. He could do nothing but to wrap his little girl in a tight embrace. He just couldn't bring himself to tell the truth about her brother, who she loved most amongst her family. Naruto knew how much close the two siblings were and the news would break her heart. But hiding it would not be possible either. She was old enough to understand something was very wrong.

"When will he be back? Is he alright?"

Every question was like salt on open wound. Naruto couldn't take it any longer. "I'm sorry Hima…but your brother…won't be back."

There was momentary pause from the young girl before she asked her next question. "What do you mean he won't be back? He promised me that he'll return soon before he left. That was going to be his gift to me this time."

Tears rolled down Naruto's eyes and he grasped his daughter even harder. "Hima…your brother is no more."

Uttering those words was perhaps the most painful thing Naruto had done in his whole life. But his daughter's reaction surprised him even more. She pushed away her father and took several steps backwards, a look of disbelief overcoming her whole face.

"You're lying." She stated while shaking her head left to right.

"I wish I was Hima, but I'm not."

"That's not possible. An-chan promised me that he'd be back. And he never goes back on his word."

"Hima…I'm sorry. But he's-"

"YOU'RE LYING!" She cut off her father, her face now overcome with rage.

"Himawari, your father is telling the truth." Shikamaru cut in this time, trying to help out his friend, who he knew was suffering even more given his daughter's reaction.

"YOU'RE ALL LIARS! An-chan...An-chan would never lie to me." Himawari dropped to her knees, but was still in denial. She refused to accept that her brother would never be back. It was all too much for her. Her mental state was crumbling under the weight of the truth that she refused to accept.

Naruto walked up to his daughter and reached out his hands towards her, but she suddenly shoved him so hard that he crashed through his desk.

Everyone in the office was stunned by what they just witnessed. Naruto himself had never seen his daughter so angry.

Tears rolled down her face at the thought of never being able to see her brother, and with them an intense pain that seared through her eyes, making her grasp them in response. She cried out from the pain. But the mental suffering was far greater than anything she ever felt physically.

"Hima, what's happening? A-Are you okay?" Naruto called out to his daughter as he got up to get to her once again. The others were also concerned for her as well and tried to help.

"STAY AWAY! All of you, stay away from me! I don't need any of you!" She warned everyone around her as the pain in her eyes reached fever pitch, and at that moment, something inside of her snapped. "ALL I WANT IS MY BROTHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER!"

An invisible shockwave radiated out from the young girl and tore through everything surrounding her, completely destroying the entire Hokage tower. The collapse of the most important building in Konoha sent tremors across the village, garnering all the villagers' attention. Something cataclysmic had just taken place.

It took a minute or so before the occupants of the building started to emerge from the rubble that was left in the wake of whatever force that destroyed the building. Naruto had managed to throw himself over his wife's unconscious body, protecting her from any further harm. He removed the debris above them and stood up, still shaken from the severe impact of the attack that destroyed his workplace. But then he remembered the person behind said destruction.

"LOOK UP!" Someone shouted.

"W-What's going on with her!? And her eyes!"

In response Naruto looked up, only to find his 8 year old daughter floating in mid-air at least 20 feet off the ground. But perhaps even more perplexing was her eyes, which had a faint blue hue and glow to them, overlapped by a white floral pattern. This was clearly neither her regular eyes, nor the Byakugan. This was something else entirely, something never before seen by anyone.

However, it wasn't just her eyes that had changed. Himawari's temperament also seemed markedly different. Her face was expressionless and there was an overwhelming aura around her that simply could not be explained, but one that was completely unbecoming of a child. She seemed almost otherworldly, floating in the air and gazing down upon everyone with her peculiar eyes. It felt as though her gaze alone weighed down upon all she observed.

"Bring me back my brother." She demanded in a cold, emotionless tone, while outstretching her palms towards the two nearest shinobi. Just by pointing her hands at them, she raised them off their feet and suspended them in mid-air.

The two struggled to break free of their captivity, but Himawari's unfeeling gaze remained unchanged.

"I said, bring me back my brother…or else!" With one downward swing of her arms, she sent both men crashing into the ground with full force and several feet under, to the utter shock and awe of everyone watching. Any shinobi, let alone a child, throwing bodies around with a simple gaze and motion of her hands was unheard of.

Himawari's eyes now moved on to the next two nearest individuals and she raised them up just like her previous victims, ready to toss them like ragdolls. No matter how much they struggled, an invisible force bound them in place.

"WE HAVE TO SUBDUE HER!" One of the ninjas on the ground shouted to three of his nearby allies, to which they all nodded and surrounded the young girl in a rectangular formation. "NOW!"

All four jumped towards Himawari, but just as they were about to reach grabbing distance, they too were stopped to a grinding halt by an invisible force and suspended in mid-air.

"Perish!" Himawari threw her hands to her sides, sending a shockwave radially outwards that sent all four of the shinobi that tried to stop her as well as the two she had been holding captive crashing into the ground in all directions.

Himawari was on a rampage. Those who witnessed her otherworldly powers were now starting to take steps back in fear. The commotion caused by the Hokage's tower collapsing had garnered the attention of the many shinobi scattered around Konoha, who were now converging to the site to check up on the situation, only to find the aftereffects of the onslaught.

One such individual was Hanabi, who had rushed to the location of the Hokage's tower to check up on her family, only to find that her niece to be the culprit. She saw with her own eyes what the young girl had done and knew that she needed to be stopped before the situation got any further out of hand. Given that Naruto looked completely out of it right now, she decided to reach out to her, being one of her close family members and hoping that she would respond favourably.

"Don't come near me, not unless you can bring me back my brother!" Himawari issued a singular warning to her aunt, who she normally loved spending time with. Friend or family seemingly did not matter to her anymore. Her only desire was to see her brother.

"Hima, your brother is no longer with us. I know it's really difficult to accept, but it is the truth no matter how harsh. Even if it hurts, we all have to come to terms with it." Hanabi tried to be the voice of reason as gently as she could while slowly making her way to her niece, but those words had the completely adverse effect. Himawari had heard enough.

"HAAAAAAAA!" With a loud scream and one thrust of her palm, Himawari sent an unbelievably powerful repulsive force towards Hanabi that shattered a plethora of bones on impact and sent the older Hyuga careening backwards through multiple people and laid them all to waste.

But the physical toll of her newfound eyes finally seemed to catch up to Himawari as she clutched her eyes for a moment before curling up into a fetal position.

Many of the shinobi who had gathered thus far and had witnessed the young girl's show of power realised that this was perhaps their golden opportunity to bring her to a stop before she brought about any further destruction.

"Hokage-sama, forgive us, but we must stop her right now. We'll do our best to capture her with minimal harm." Mirai, Asuma and Kurenai's daughter informed Naruto before rushing towards his daughter. A multitude of other shinobi followed suite as Naruto could only watch in horror. Not only had he lost his son that day, but his daughter had transformed into something…grotesque.

Over a dozen ninjas jumped towards Himawari at once to bring her down, but just before they could reach her, Himawari suddenly unwrapped herself from her temporary hibernation and shot up high into the sky above Konoha.

"I've had enough of all of your lies! Bring me back AN-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNN!" Her scream reverberated through the entirely of Konoha as she outstretched her entire body and let loose a shockwave similar to what she had used earlier but on a gigantic scale, one that tore through the village below unlike anything ever before.

The widespread devastation changed the structure of the village as that one attack destroyed much of Konoha's central business district surrounding the Hokage tower. It was complete and utter chaos. The ones outside the blast radius rushed in to the affected area to help out those caught up in it. This was another huge blow to Konoha following the toll the village had suffered in the hands of the Uchiha and Kumogakure.

Himawari breathed heavily from exhaustion while looking down upon the destruction she had caused below. Yet she felt nothing. All she cared about was to see her brother again.

At that moment, she noticed a sudden change in the atmosphere – the distant sound of thunder, and black clouds looming in all around her in the sky. This did not seem natural. As she looked around, she felt an overwhelming presence in the sky some distance in front of her. It was none other than her father, floating in the air just like her, yet he was so very different than his usual self. A dark red aura surrounded him and a torrent of powerful winds circulated all around them above Konoha. It was as though nature itself was reacting to his anger. For the very first time Himawari felt like she was in someone else's domain entirely, despite the powers granted to her by her eyes.

"THAT'S ENOUGH! Do you understand the consequences of your actions and the people you've affected?"

"I won't stop, not until I have brother back. Those people, they all liars! I know he's out there. We just have to bring him back." Himawari's eyes and her words both seemed to be in vain. She seemed to be losing it.

"It is time for you to cease and desist. This is my order as the Hokage, not as your father."

"It seems even you don't understand my pain. I will make you understand!" With one thrust of her palm, Himawari hit her father with the same devastating technique that she used earlier on her aunt. However, it seemed to be almost ineffective on him as it only made him flinch ever so slightly out of position.

Naruto wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and noticed the blood pouring out of his lacerated lip. He never expected for his own daughter to attack him unprovoked like this. It appeared that all the power she had awakened to was mentally overwhelming her. Her young mind did not truly know how to handle it, and with her emotions out of control from the loss of her brother – she was going on an uncontrolled rampage.

Naruto needed to put an end to this. And so he did.

In the blink of an eye, Naruto closed in on his daughter and landed a gut wrenching punch. Given the sheer shock and power of the impact, Himawari was instantly out cold.

But Naruto held her in his hands before she could plummet to the ground far below. This was the first time in his life that he had raised his hands on his daughter. And it hurt him so much, far more than it hurt her. "Forgive me…for it is my duty as the Hokage to protect this village and its people, even from my own family if necessary."

* * *

 _Those eyes…fascinating, don't you think? My people call it "The Eye of another World". They'd never seen anything quite like it before, until **HE** came here. Some of them even thought that perhaps **I** may have those eyes as well. Not that I blame them. Given that there are only two people reportedly in history to ever awaken those eyes, both of whom have a combination of Uzumaki and Hyuga heritage, the logical train of thought would suggest that given my genetic ties to the Uzumaki and Hyuga, I too might be able to awaken those eyes._

 _Alas, that hasn't been the case. I've run countless experiments on myself, studying my own DNA in excruciating detail, yet those eyes still allude me. Clearly, there is some other factor that is missing – one that I haven't taken into account. But I intend to find out someday. Perhaps if I could get a sample of Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga's cells, and most importantly, their daughter's – I might have the answer! Maybe one day…_

* * *

Hey all, I haven't written an author's note in a little while, so it's nice to be back here. As **unipei** and **Shadow Susanoo** picked up, the past few ANs (including the above) were actually the thoughts of a certain character because I wanted to try something interesting. In fact, they are the thoughts of a character yet to be introduced (from the future) - a character that will be important to the story and is linked in some way to the main characters.

So here's a challenge for you all since we haven't done this in a while - can you guess his identity from the hints so far? He will be introduced soon and it'll be fun to see how many of you can identity what his links are to the main characters.

 **MODdenial:** No, Boruto won't be removed from the character list. Despite the current circumstances, he has still been a main focus of the story.

 **DarkManta:** Oh man, you may have predicted part of the future lol.

 **NarHina & Shadow Susanoo:** You will find out about Sarada's side of the story soon enough. The Uchiha has a story arc running alongside the main characters as you might have noticed.

That is all I have for you all today. Recently we broke 1000+ reviews. Even more so than the numbers (which is nice since it gives the story more exposure), I really do enjoy reading what you have to say about the story and interacting with you all. Really those are the only returns I get from writing this, besides just enjoying writing as a hobby of course. So I hope you'll continue the conversation, and I thank you all for the amazing support you've shown me over the years.

Until next time, take care.


	54. Lost in an Unknown World

**Lost in an Unknown World**

* * *

Boruto slowly opened his right eye – the one functioning eye that was remaining. His vision was hazy and his head was aching like crazy. He felt like he was…floating?

As his consciousness came to, he could literally feel his body submerged underwater. With his vision getting clearer he surveyed the situation only to find himself locked inside some sort of transparent cylindrical pod which was completely filled to the brim with a viscous liquid. Boruto could move his limbs around somewhat but his head was locked in place by a helmet similar to ones worn by underwater divers, which provided the wearer with ample oxygen and prevented him from suffocating within the pod.

Boruto was panicking a little bit. He wasn't sure what this contraption was but he wanted out. He barely had much strength in his body, so he started banging on the walls of the pod from the inside in the hopes of getting someone's attention. Luckily for him almost in a reactive way, the liquid started to drain away from the bottom of the chamber and once it was all gone, the lock on his helmet opened up, allowing for Boruto to stand on his two feet once again. A small door opened up on one side of the pod and Boruto jumped out. He hated the idea of being stuck inside whatever that thing was.

For the first time Boruto was able to take a look around the room properly and it left him in awe. Everything surrounding him was so pristine and futuristic. All the surfaces in the room had a glassy look to them. In the centre of the room was the pod that he was previously inside, which seemed to be connected to some sort of a monitor on a desk nearby. Other than that the room was relatively empty with only what appeared to be a electromagnetically floating metallic bed in one corner. Boruto looked up at the sign above the door and it read "Medical Bay". As expected, this was a medical facility where he was being treated, but this technology was far beyond anything the young man had never seen before.

"Where the heck am I? If this is the afterlife, it's quite different from what I expected." Boruto looked down at his body and realised that he was still quite alive. But he was almost stark naked, with only some sort of underwear on. Luckily for him, he found a gown on a desk nearby that he could put on. To his surprise, although he still felt a little light-headed, the numerous serious injuries on his body that he sustained during the previous battle had completely healed up. It was quite shocking.

Boruto's vision was restricted to just his right eye thus far. He remembered how he had awakened a new power in his eyes during the last battle and before his final moments, he gave one of his eyes to his friend, Yahiko, who had lost one of his eyes at the hands of Sarada. Boruto knew he would have to sacrifice himself to protect the people of his village, so at the very least he wanted to give a parting gift to his dear friend. Little did he expect to still be alive.

But the power he awakened was truly amazing even though he understood little about it. Just to check that he was still capable of using it, Boruto first activated his Byakugan as usual and then searched deep within to locate that power once more, just like he had felt when he first awakened it. Thus his Byakugan transcended even further beyond into a new form. His eye glowed a light blue with a floral pattern superimposed on the Byakugan's white iris.

Boruto could feel an amazing power flowing through his veins. It was almost as though he could see and feel the forces of nature working around him unlike ever before, and he could weave them to his will. By performing a simple manipulation of gravity, Boruto lifted his body off the ground and floated freely in the air.

"This eye…this power…is otherworldly." Boruto whispered in awe before bringing himself back down to the ground. It was a surreal experience.

However, something was off. He had the feint feeling of a different power within him, one that was completely foreign to him. Upon focusing, Boruto felt it originate from where his left eye would be, even though he had given up his left in the last battle. Boruto noticed a mirror on a nearby wall and walked over to check his reflection. He could see that his left eyelids were shut by a thin medical tape, but upon touching it he was shocked to find that his eye socket was no longer empty. There was definitely something inside. But how could that be possible?

Thus Boruto removed the tape keeping his left eyelids shut and slowly opened his eye. As he did so, he could once again see the world with both eyes. But this left eye was markedly different from his right eye. It brought with it eyesight and powers Boruto had never felt before. And it was quite draining as well, unlike his normal eye.

Boruto looked up at the mirror to see what this was and what he saw made him nearly fall backwards in both shock and horror. He knew this eye all too well. His left eye…was the Sharingan.

"What!?" How!?" Boruto asked those questions to himself, having a hard time believing what he was seeing.

The black pinwheel shaped dots in his eyes, the red irises, there was no mistaking it. This eye appeared much more dark and foreboding, a stark contrast to the bright and elegant look of his other eye. It was all too much for the young Uzumaki to take in.

At that moment the door to the room slid open automatically and a person stepped in ever so slowly.

Boruto looked over only to find a truly decrepit old man at the door, one who seemed to be completely broken down by age. This had to be the oldest man Boruto had ever seen in his life. The old man seemed to have trouble standing straight, and was hunched over and retained his balance with the help of a metallic cane. It was quite a bewildering sight, seeing someone so worn down by the times still be able to move.

"It would appear you have finally awakened, my dear child." The old man said in a shaky, yet kind voice. "I assume you have a lot of questions, so I'll try to answer whatever I can."

"O-Okay then who are you and where am I?" Boruto started with the most important of his queries. He needed answers and fast.

"I'm the one who found you outside, injured and in critical condition. So I brought you into my base and treated you. You're lucky that you ended up here at just the right time, or your injuries may have been the end of you."

"How the heck did I end up here? I don't remember much at all."

"Although I'm not fully certain, I believe it was because of your eye. It seems to have the power to manipulate the very fabric of space-time. It would appear that in your final moments, the true power of your eyes awakened as a form of self-preservation and created a rupture in space-time, which led you here. But to see a fellow shinobi here after all these years…it is quite unbelievable. Your powers are one of a kind."

Boruto couldn't truly comprehend what he was hearing, but he remembered what happened to him before he lost consciousness. He had fought valiantly against nearly the entirely of Kumogakure's forces before finally being overwhelmed by Sarada, who beat him down before eventually throwing him into the great canyon. Boruto had no strength left and for all intents and purposes, he thought it was all over for him. But during his last moments he felt his eye reacting in a way he never felt before and soon after he lost consciousness. The next thing he knew he was in this place.

"A fellow shinobi? Does that mean you were once a ninja too?" Boruto asked the old man, before he realised something important. "Wait, how do you know about my eyes and what happened to me?"

The old man moved over to the chair next to the desk containing a monitor and took a seat. He seemed physically drained from even standing. "I'm sorry child…but I took a look into your memories in order to understand your situation and provide proper treatment."

"Looked into my memories?" Boruto was bewildered at how casually the old man said such an outlandish thing.

"Indeed. It is an ability granted by my eyes." He activated his right eye and sure enough, it was a sight all too familiar – the Sharingan!

"You're an Uchiha!? Who are you exactly?"

"Yes…Uchiha…I think that was part of my name a long, long time ago. However, much time has passed since then. I've grown old far beyond any shinobi has ever known to have lived – well over a century. However, time has not treated me well. With age I've been plagued by an illness that has slowly deteriorated my memories. Now I can't even remember my name properly, let alone my past, only vague flashes of a time long elapsed."

It was at that moment that Boruto finally noticed the fact that this man's left eye was missing, the same eye that he had somehow managed to gain. "Wait, does that mean you're the one who planted the Sharingan within me!?"

"Indeed I did. As you can see, I'm practically on my last legs. My body has deteriorated to the point that it is now only hanging on by a thread. I believe you're in much greater need of that eye than I am."

"But why would you give up your eye to someone else, let alone the Sharingan – one of the most valuable eyes?"

"Did you not do the same before arriving here?"

"Y-Yes…I…"

"I know the sacrifice that you made for your people. You are someone pure of heart. That much is evident. I'm certain you will use that eye for the right purpose. Besides, you are a shinobi of Konoha, are you not? That name…Konoha…it resonates with me. Somehow I feel as though it is a place I am all too familiar with. Maybe I too was once associated with that village once upon a time."

"Well, Konoha was created by the Uchiha clan, so it wouldn't be surprising. Regardless, I should thank you for donating me your eye and treating my injuries. I don't know how I could repay you saving my life, but I'm truly grateful." Even though Boruto was still a bit apprehensive about this man especially given that he was an Uchiha, it was thanks to him that he was able to recover. That much was certain. He had a lot more questions, but there was a much more pressing matter at hand.

"Please, there is no need for any repayment. It is my pleasure to be able to aid a fellow shinobi. Although this place may not be much of a home, feel free to make yourself at home for as long as you like."

"I can't do that. I don't have any more time to waste. I need to get back to Konoha ASAP. The village is in danger. Not to mention, my family must be worried sick about me. Can you tell me where exactly we are and how I can get back? Are we still in the Land of Fire, or some other country? I've never seen this kind of technology before."

The old man's expression took a darker turn at that question. He got up from his seat and started walking ever so slowly. "Come with me child. There's something you must see for yourself to understand."

The two walked through a long corridor, alongside which were doors to many rooms. From what Boruto could gather from first look, this placed seemed like some sort of a multi-purpose research and medical facility. There was far too much technology that he did not know or understand. Eventually the two reached the end of the corridor where there were several lifts. Boruto followed the old man into one of the lifts and with the press of a button they were moving up. After a few seconds the lift came to a stop and the doors opened to a short hallway that seemed to lead to an exit.

The two walked forward and through the exit, that opened up on cue of them approaching. Finally, Boruto was met with the outside world and the sight he saw was one he couldn't imagine in his wildest dreams.

It was night time and they were in the middle of a desert. But there were countless wind turbines as far as the eyes could see. This entire desert was one gigantic energy generation plant with technology beyond anything conceived by the shinobi. But none of this was of much concern to Boruto at this point, as there was one thing in particular that left the young man in awe as he looked up at the night sky – a sight that was unfathomable.

Two moons next to one another in the heavens above.

It made Boruto realise for the first time that this place was somewhere truly foreign. "H-How is this possible? Where am I right now?"

"I'm sorry to say this child, but you are no longer in the shinobi world. This is a world far away from your home. You were only able to get here by tearing through the very fabric of space and time, just as I once did a long time ago. We accomplished the impossible. The two of us are the only shinobi in this world – the world of the Samurai."

"S-Samurai? I thought they were just folklore." Boruto's head was aching as he was having a difficult time accepting what he was seeing and hearing. But he decided to focus on the most important question once more. "How can I get back to my world? You have to tell me."

The old man shook his head apologetically. "I wish I had that answer, but there is no going back. I've tried many a times and I've failed just as many times. Thus I accepted my fate and struck a deal with the Samurai. They are part of a highly advanced race and thanks in part to their technology, I've lived a life far beyond ever thought possible, stranded in this unknown world as a lone shinobi...until your arrival."

Boruto dropped to his knees in hopelessness. How could this be possible? There existed a different world altogether besides the one in which he lived. That fact alone was unfathomable. But to be stuck here for the rest of his life without being able to see his family ever again, those thoughts were unbearable. This could not be happening.

While Boruto wallowed in despair, the old man behind him observed the boy closely with his Sharingan. _"I suppose it is my destiny to forever be connected to the Uzumaki, from the beginning to the end. It would appear that fate has provided me with one final opportunity to bring forth my vision. I will not fail this time."_

* * *

Can't believe its been this long since I last updated. I feel like I've been writing this chapter for a month, but pretty much all of my free time has gone into Dragonball FighterZ. My goodness, that game is amazing.

In any case, this chapter's focus was on Boruto...and the old man. And who might this old man be? I'll leave that up to you to guess until next chapter. This whole scenario might give you a sense of dejavu.

I do want to say that the Samurai are somewhat different in this story, as they'll play an important part and are just as powerful as the shinobi. I always loved the Samurai and felt they didn't get a lot of focus. It should make for an interesting dynamic. The other character whose thoughts were being given at the end of the past few chapters is in fact part samurai. Anyway, more on this soon.

 **hinatahyuugaa:** There will be more on Himawari's new eyes in a bit, but she and Boruto both unlocked the same eyes in their own ways.

 **ByakuSharingan123:** Haha, yes, the world will indeed know pain. That scene of Himawari floating above Konoha was very reminiscent of that, wasn't it?

 **NarHina:** Somewhere in there, you actually have the answer to who the new character is ;)

 **theeyethatwatchesoverall:** No more tears. Boruto is alive, at least.

That is all for today. I will see you all next time, hopefully sooner this time. Until then, take care.


	55. The Forgotten Truth

**The Forgotten Truth**

* * *

The news of there being no way to return home was difficult for Boruto to digest at first, but as with most things, time started to ease the pain. There was also the hope that if somehow Boruto was able to master the hidden powers of his new eyes, he might be able to figure out how he got to this world in the first place, thus securing a potential way for his return. He needed some kind of hope in this completely unforeseen circumstance he was stuck in. Thus the young Uzumaki started his rehabilitation and training in order to master the new powers granted by both of his eyes.

It was all a bit overwhelming. The evolved form of his Byakugan was incredibly powerful. His vision showed him so much more and allowed him to do things he never thought possible, but there was the Sharingan on top of that, which was another beast in and of itself. However, Boruto was incredibly talented and started to figure out the nuances of his eyes quite quickly, especially with the help of his new host, who provided him with a lot of useful tips on how to properly master the various intricacies of the Sharingan. Over time Boruto came to trust the old man and started to explore the vicinities of his new home and learn about the various technologies housed within. There was certainly something surreal about discovering a new world and all the unknowns it had to offer. Not everything was as hopeless as it once seemed.

 **About a month later…**

It was evening. Boruto just returned back to the base after a day's training. He had gotten used to living in this underground research facility in the middle of this desert. It wasn't home, but it was the closest thing he could call home in this world. He had explored the surrounding areas and even got to meet a certain individual who frequented this desolate land. That person explained to him a lot about this world, its history, its people and the role of the samurai. But that was a story for a different time.

Most importantly, Boruto was completely healed up at this point thanks in part to the amazing technology present at the facility. He was absolutely determined to find a way to use his eyes to once more open a pathway back to his own world, just like he had somehow done to get here in seemingly his final moments, which in turn ended up saving his life.

Today the old man was gone from the base and so Boruto was here by himself. As usual, he went to the medical bay and entered inside the pod where he originally found himself, and within 15 minutes, almost all of his minor injuries were healed up. The advancements in medical technology here was incredible and it allowed Boruto to push himself much harder in his training without having to worry about minor injuries piling up over time.

Feeling refreshed, Boruto went over to the kitchen to grab some food. Usually he would go out to meet his acquaintance at this time as they both loved learning about their respective worlds from one another, but today that person would not be able to make it. Boruto was stuck here at the base bored out of his mind, not knowing what to do to pass time. So he decided to just go back to his room and just get some sleep.

As he was making his way back, he noticed that a certain room that was normally always shut was currently open. The sign above the door read "Data Storage and Visualisation" and the panel next to the door glowed a green colour, meaning it was free to enter. This was odd to Boruto because this was the only room in the entire base he had never entered. He didn't really pay much attention to it before, but now he was curious. It wouldn't hurt to take a look.

So he entered the room and instantly the lights turned on automatically, revealing what was more or less an empty space at first glance. There was a monitor in one corner and the floor appeared different somehow. Boruto was a little underwhelmed. Given the name above the room, he was expecting to find some sort of a storage facility, perhaps something interesting as well.

Disappointed, just as Boruto was about to turn around and leave, the floor below him lit up and a female voice emanated through the room.

"Retinal scan complete. DNA match confirmed. Experimental data access authorised."

Boruto was caught off guard by all that was going on around him. Once the voice stopped speaking, the monitor near him lit up with a bunch of data and text. However, what shocked him the most was a transparent figure that formed across the room – the figure being an exact hologram replica of Boruto. It stood still without moving, similar to the skeletal models used to teach students about the bone structure of humans. Only moments later, a second hologram formed next to the first, this one of a young female similar in age to Boruto, one that seemed awfully familiar.

Boruto didn't know what the heck was going but he was definitely perturbed from seeing his own figure standing in front of his very eyes. H decided to consult the text on the monitor in the hopes of gaining some much needed insight.

 _Current Experimental Subject: Boruto Uzumaki._

 _Key hereditary traits: Uzumaki. Hyuga._

 _Genetic ocular specialty: Byakugan. Further, yet currently unidentified form of the Byakugan, possibly brought forth by the Byakugan's prolonged exposure to Uzumaki cells. More data required to fully understand this transformation._

 _Transplanted ocular specialty: Sharingan. Current estimates show high compatibility (above 90%) with subject. Minimal side effects observed. Eye condition fully stabilised. Strong mental fortitude and potential of activating Mangekyou Sharingan under favourable conditions._

 _Observer Creation Protocol: Ready for initiation._

Boruto was lost for words as there was data on nearly every single one of his physical traits stored here, many of which that he himself didn't fully comprehend. Experimental subject? Activating Mangekyou Sharingan? Observer creation protocol? He had no idea what was truly going on here, but it all felt unnerving. Perhaps the other experimental subject would hold an answer.

But just reading the name alone made Boruto fall backwards in shock.

 _Failed Experimental Subject: Kushina Uzumaki_

Boruto couldn't believe what he was seeing. He looked up at the hologram of the young woman standing next to his artificial self once again and finally understood why he felt that intense sense of dejavu. This was indeed his grandmother, or at least a much younger version of herself. But why was her information stored here? Why was she being referred to as a "failed" experimental subject? Something was seriously wrong here. The old man needed to do a lot of explaining. Perhaps he wasn't as benevolent of an individual as he put on and had a hidden agenda behind assisting Boruto. He would find out for sure.

As though almost on cue, Boruto heard the door to the room open up and sure enough, there he was.

"It would appear you've finally come across my secret. It was bound to happen one way or another." The old max explained casually.

"What the heck is the meaning of all this!? What is going on here and how do you know my grandmother!?"

"Ah yes, Kushina. It has been a long time since she arrived in this world, just like yourself. I had high hopes for her, but the experiment did not work out as planned. She just couldn't handle it. It took years to fix her back up again and sort out her memories. But it was worth sending her back to the shinobi world again. I couldn't let the lineage of the Uzumaki clan leader simply wither away in an unknown world. Even if she herself was incapable of bringing about the change that I sought, perhaps one of the future generations that followed would be capable. And here you are – her grandchild, the one with the power of the Uzumaki and Hyuga combined. It is a fascinating turn of events, for me to become involved with the scion of those two clans for one final time."

"What are you talking about? You sent my grandmother back to the shinobi world? That means you lied to me when we first met." Boruto was getting increasingly furious at every word the old man spoke. This man could no longer be trusted and Boruto was ready to act at a moment's notice. "WHO ARE YOU!?"

"Who am I?" The old man's expression turned deadly serious. "You will surely understand when you discover the truth of your lineage."

A sharp pain surged through Boruto's Sharingan as he took off his eyepatch to realise that it was reacting to something. The pain spread across his entire body, causing him to grasp on to the eye and drop to his knees in intense agony. "W-What is h-happening?" Boruto questioned while looking up at the old man. But he only heard two words.

"MANGEKYOU SHARINGAN!"

Instantly Boruto felt all his senses fade into darkness momentarily. It took a short while, but Boruto was woken up by the feeling of his body moving. He was….walking, almost involuntarily. He could hear people screaming and crying all around him. It sounded like he was in the midst of a battlefield. Finally, as his vision came to be, Boruto saw all around him a village that was quite literally burning to the ground, flames as far as the eyes could so. In the midst of it all, his body moved on its own and he had no control over it whatsoever. In fact, Boruto could tell that this wasn't even his own body. He was inside someone else's. More specifically, he was watching the world through the eyes of another person.

While he wondered who this person was that he inhabited, they finally reached their destination – a large set of wooden doors that led into a huge clan house. Boruto saw the name plate next to the door and couldn't believe what he was reading – "UZUMAKI CLAN". This was impossible.

Moments later, Boruto's host blasted the doors open, only to be greeted by an entire clan of angry Uzumaki. They looked like they wanted to murder whoever this person was. But despite this, this man remained completely unphased. Not only could Boruto feel every sensation in this man's body, he could read his thoughts as well. It was as though they were one and the same.

"MADARAAAAAAAA!" The Uzumaki screamed and attacked all at once.

And so Boruto had his answer. To his absolute disbelief, he was inside the body of Madara Uchiha, the legendary shinobi of yore. Now it all made sense. This village must be Uzushiogakure and Boruto was reliving its destruction at the hands of Madara. That could only mean the Uzumaki clan were about to meet the same fate.

Sure enough, just as the stories permeated through the survivors of their clan, Madara cut through every single Uzumaki in sight. It was a bloodbath. The numbers did not matter. Madara was on a plateau all on his own. He was far too strong. One by one, every single Uzumaki fell in front of him until eventually only the children remained, cowering in fear of their family's destroyer looming over them. They were at his mercy.

Boruto had no choice but to watch this horrific scene unfold before his very eyes. Even if he wanted to avert his gaze, he didn't have the ability to. He was being forced to observe the annihilation of his own people and it was sickening. There was nothing he could do to save them. He wanted out so badly but he was helpless, just like the Uzumaki that were slain in front of his very eyes.

However, for the first time Boruto felt hesitation within his host. He could feel a sense of remorse within Madara that was quite unexpected given the image he had of him. The Uchiha seemed to be in pain and just couldn't bring himself to finish off the final remnants of the Uzumaki. It didn't make sense to Boruto how this man could coldheartedly slay almost the entirety of the Uzumaki clan and yet show such remorse in the final moments.

But of course, just as in the stories passed through the generations, in these final moments, the leader of the Uzumaki clan arrived at the scene in order to protect whatever was left of his clan and seek vengeance for all those who perished. Madara and the Uzumaki clan leader engaged in a battle of cataclysmic proportions in front of Boruto's very eyes, but once again, just as the stories predicted, in the end the Uzumaki clan leader was betrayed by his best friend, the Hyuga clan leader, who stabbed him in the back due to being under the influence of Madara's genjutsu in order to bring an end to the battle.

So far, everything seemed as one would expect. However, this is where things took a different turn from the stories that Boruto had heard from his clan.

Madara spoke for the first time after having achieved his goal. But there was no sense of joy within him. "I had no other options. For the sake of the shinobi, the evil that is the Uzumaki clan had to be destroyed from its very roots. You planted the seeds of animosity within shinobi from the shadows just so you could profit off of the conflict and become stronger. It was easy wasn't it, to not think of others as humans, but as objects hollow of meaning to simply cut down? That is how you viewed everyone else, and that is why I could no longer allow this village that has been built upon the blood and tears of so many innocent lives to continue existing. This is the only path to finding peace."

Even in his last moments as he lay on the ground bleeding due to the sword that pierced his heart, the Uzumaki leader smiled cynically. "Peace? You're still talking about that garbage. You're weak Madara. You've always been weak. I should have destroyed your clan when I had the chance alongside the many we've eradicated throughout history. You seek this peace that will never exist. You still don't understand that we shinobi exist to wage war. It is only natural for those with power to dominate the weak. That is how we become stronger. Without conflict, we shinobi will cease to exist!"

"YOU'RE WRONG! As shinobi, we can co-exist. We WILL co-exist. I will prove it by creating a village where all the clans will stand beside one another as allies, brought together by their shared Will of Fire, under the leadership of a Hokage. It will be a village unlike what the Uzumaki created with Uzushiogakure by pillaging and destroying the lives of many. The village I create will work to end conflict once and for all, not create more. It will stand the test of time by showing the entire world that when we shinobi co-operate, we CAN find true peace."

"You will soon understand Madara…that this dream of yours…is nothing but a lie." And those were the final words of the Uzumaki clan leader.

But Madara paid no heed. He believed in his dream. The dream of a certain peace.

Thus he turned to the children of the Uzumaki clan once more, this time with compassion. "Even if I asked for your forgiveness, it would not be possible for me to gain a reprieve. In your eyes I have committed a crime that is simply unforgivable – that much I understand. Such is the harshness of the shinobi. But no matter how heinous the actions of your parents and ancestors, you children are innocent." Madara now focused his gaze on the son of the Uzumaki clan leader. "I want you to take the rest of your remaining clan members and flee from this village. I will ensure your safety. It is my sincere belief that no matter how evil the Uzumaki may have been, in the wake of this calamity, there is an opportunity for renewal. If and when that day comes when the Uzumaki choose to walk a path of righteousness, I will welcome you all with open arms at my own village. Perhaps one day…one of your progeny will inherit my Will of Fire, and guide this world towards true peace."

And thus Boruto's senses were enveloped by darkness once again. But within that darkness, Boruto saw a man walking towards him, the same old man who had saved him.

"Ironic don't you think that I stand here after all these years with the descendant of the same Uzumaki whose reign of terror I brought to an end?"

Boruto shook his head in disbelief. Madara was the destroyer of his clan. He was the one that was supposed to be evil. "You're lying. This is all fabricated. The Uzumaki clan was destroyed by you because you were the one hungry for power, not the other way round! This is all part of your genjutsu!"

"Look deep within you Boruto. It is correct that I used my eyes to show you a glimpse of the past, but you have my eye now. You could feel my emotions. You could even perceive my very thoughts. You know what you saw was the truth. The story passed on through you clan has been changed to make them appear as the victims, as the righteous ones. But that simply wasn't who the Uzumaki were."

"NOOOOO! That can't be true!" Boruto was still in denial, but he knew deep down better than anyone else that Madara was telling the truth. After all, he could see the world through Madara's eyes now. This was too much for the young Uzumaki to accept.

"It is okay Boruto. Reality can be harsh at times. That being said, I'm glad to see that my wish came true. Despite your ancestors' deplorable ways, the Uzumaki have reformed, to the point that your father is the current Hokage, respected by all his peers. But above all, within you Boruto I can feel a strong sense of justice that is very reminiscent of my younger self."

Boruto was surprised to hear of Madara's confession. He always imagined that Madara hated the Uzumaki as a whole, but that didn't seem to be the case. The old man seemed genuine in his admission.

"Unfortunately there was one mistake in my approach, as I came to find out." Madara continued, this time with more seriousness to his tone, one that concerned Boruto.

"What do you mean Madara?"

"As you already know, I did end up creating a village that was meant to be the complete antithesis of Uzushiogakure. A village of certain peace, one that would be a beacon of hope to the rest of the world, a place of coexistence for all ninja alike – Konohagakure. I tried my best to create alliances with other shinobi villages, but no matter how much I tried, they all feared the strength of Konoha and attempted to either betray us or tried to destroy us outright. The conflict that I wished to bring to an end only became worse with time. Konoha was constantly embroiled in a state of war with other villages. But above all, due to both my past actions of destroying Uzushiogakure and my present actions of fending my own village of Konoha, I became known as a warlord who sought to create conflict in order to establish my dominance. Even though I was the strongest, even though no one could overcome me, I felt defeated inside as even my own people, the residents of Konoha and the Uchiha clan itself, started to misunderstand me. My name became synonymous with the one thing I hated most – conflict."

"Madara…" Boruto could feel the old man's pain. It was as though his eyes connected them together. Boruto could see with Madara's own eye the husk of man that has long since been mentally defeated. A man who despised the legacy he has left behind.

"That is why I decided to leave Konoha, never to return. It was then that I also discovered my eye's special ability to travel between worlds, and so I ended up here. Since then I've had a lot of opportunity to reflect on my choices as I travelled to the far corners of this world and learn much from the people here. I was far too naïve. I know now the error in my ways, an error that you and your family are bound to repeat. However, I have not given up on the shinobi. I have one final chance to bring forth the peace that I once sought. But I am no longer capable of achieving that peace on my own. That is why I've given you my eye, for you Boruto are the key that can change the shinobi forever. I can feel…no…I KNOW you are the one. You have been blessed with a power unlike anyone has ever seen. Once you combine it with mine, you can become the one…the Observer of all shinobi!" Madara exclaimed with great vigour. In his mind, he had once again found the way from within the darkness.

For the first Boruto could feel a sense of sinister undertone to Madara's voice. He may not be intrinsically evil, neither did he seem to have any evil intentions, but there was almost a hint of madness to the old man's appearance – a madness born from one's own failures and insecurities. Boruto took a step back as precaution but Madara gazed directly at him with a smile.

"I will carve the truth of the shinobi into your very soul Boruto. It will hurt. It will certainly hurt beyond your wildest imaginations, and for that I apologise, but this pain will make you STRONGER! Observe Boruto, for it is your DUTY to observe!"

Thus, on that day, the very course of the shinobi's history was set.

* * *

As **DarkManta, Narhina** and **gio08** pointed out, Madara is indeed back, but he isn't necessarily evil, or so it seems. Next chapter will be pretty significant, as the other key character that I've been teasing for a while will finally be introduced.

What do you think happens to Boruto? What might be Madara's intentions for him? I'll leave you with those questions this time.

Now to address a few comments:

 **Rose Tiger:** Will Boruto return home? That is an interesting question right now. You'll find out next time.

 **MODdenial:** I wouldn't quite say that Boruto's eye problem is "fixed". As you saw, Madara certainly has a reason as to why he gave Boruto his eye.

 **theeyethatwatchesoverall:** Thanks to you too. But man, your username is shockingly fitting for what is to come next chapter, no joke.

 **Avery Datukon:** There is ALWAYS a plot twist!

Other than that, I won't be doing an April Fool's chapter this year. Instead I'll be working on the next chapter since its quite an important one. So I'll see you all next time, and don't fall for any April Fools tricks. You have been warned ;)


	56. Birth of an Observer

**Birth of an Observer**

* * *

An entire year passed during which Boruto was trapped inside Madara's genjutsu. Inside the genjutsu world, Madara could manipulate the perception of time to slow it down significantly. So while it may have only been a year to the outside world, inside his genjutsu it'd been close to a thousand years.

As with all users of the Mangekyou Sharingan, Madara's eyes granted him special abilities that were exclusive only to him. Using his eyes, Madara was able to move between worlds, but that wasn't all. Madara would often receive visions of the past through his eyes of events involving his ancestors. He could hear the voices of many an Uchiha that perished in battle. These visions allowed Madara to witness the long, bloody history of the shinobi. They allowed him access to knowledge that no one else in the world possessed, and more importantly, it allowed him to understand the fundamental truth of the shinobi. But all of this came at a great price – Madara's very psyche. It was difficult, nigh impossible even, for one man to be able to witness so much unbridled cruelty and hatred. The knowledge of the truth drove Madara to the very brink of insanity at times. Yet it was this truth that he intended to impart on to Boruto.

Thus he trapped Boruto in his genjutsu and made the young Uzumaki relive the history of the shinobi that transpired over a thousand years as seen through the eyes of generations of Uchiha. Unfortunately, this history was anything but peaceful. It was years, decades, centuries and a millennium of war and suffering. Countless lives were lost during conflicts that ceased to end. Battlefields littered with bodies of those long forgotten. It was a hopeless endeavour. And Boruto was forced to witness it all. He was forced to suffer tragedy after tragedy, war after war, betrayal after betrayal, loss after loss that tested his very sanity. He didn't just watch either; Boruto lived through the physical and emotional pain of countless individuals who lost everything in the endless conflict – their homes, their loved ones, and even themselves. At first he refused to give up hope, but after enduring so much pain, the Boruto that was filled with hope for a future of mutual respect amongst all shinobi ceased to exist, replaced by a sage-like individual whose knowledge gave him a much clearer understanding of the truth of his kind. And from that understanding came a vision on how to bring about a lasting peace, a peace that would finally bring an end to an entire history of bloodshed. After witnessing the history of his kind, he no longer believed in the misguided notion that shinobi when left to their own devices could create a peaceful coexistence. Someone needed to put an end to this cycle of hatred. And that someone would have to be him, for he alone truly understood the truth.

While Boruto's body may have physically aged by just a year, mentally he had lived nearly a 1000 years. Finally after all this time, he broke free of Madara's captivity. And he wasted not a single moment in enacting his plan. Madara's body currently lay incapacitated on the ground and he was bleeding profusely from his empty eye socket. Boruto had extracted Madara's remaining eye, leaving the Uchiha without any sight at all.

With one wave of his right hand, Boruto effortlessly lifted the old man's body and suspended it in mid-air. It looked almost akin to telekinesis, but in reality Boruto was manipulating gravity itself using his eyes. Just holding out his arm with his palm outstretched was enough to lock a person in place.

"Despite the eons of suffering you've made me endure Madara, you did make me understand a truth that has long since been forgotten. For that I will grant you a merciful end." Boruto's eyes glowed a bright blue and a dark red, his evolved Byakugan and his now activated Mangekyou Sharingan focused solely on Madara. "Having been overcome by your own madness, you seem to have overlooked the pain you've imparted upon others. For the next chapter of the shinobi to begin, a twisted relic of the past such as yourself must be wiped clean. You will be destroyed immediately Madara!"

Madara could feel his body constrict uncontrollably. He knew this was the end of the line for him. Yet he smiled inwardly. For the first time in his entire life, he felt a sense of hope he had never felt before. _"The voices of those victimised by the shinobi's conflict that haunted me endlessly have finally ceased. I may not have found the answer, but I know that you Boruto will be able to change the way of the ninja forever. My task here is complete. Thus I can finally be at peace."_ With those final thoughts Madara braced for the inevitable. Even he knew that he deserved nothing less for the unimaginable suffering that he made this young man endure. It was only right. But it was all for a greater good in his eyes.

"Punishment of the Shinobi!" Boruto combined the abilities granted to him by both of his eyes and focused every ounce of his ocular powers on Madara, to create a technique unlike anything seen before in history. This was Boruto's answer to all those who instigated conflict, to all those that made others suffer for their own gains – to all evil. "You will be ERASED from this world!"

Boruto closed his outstretched palm and with a brilliant flash of white light, Madara's body disintegrated on the atomic level and was dispersed into the wind. Just like that, in an instant, the legendary Uchiha was no more.

This was just a glimpse of Boruto's true power. But that power came at a price. The young Uzumaki was bleeding from both eyes and appeared visibly exhausted. Regardless of the side effects, this was only just the beginning.

Having exacted his retribution towards his torturer and at the same time taking the first step towards restoring true peace, Boruto broke out of the underground research facility that he was held captive in for the first time in a year. He flew up high into the sky, letting the cool breeze of the night calm his mind. From here he could see everything much clearly.

"My Byakugan's visual capabilities have amplified to a level further beyond. I can see clearly now…even across worlds. This is no longer just an ordinary Byakugan. This is the Byakugan reborn – Tensei Byakugan. In short...Tenseigan." For the first time since activating it, Boruto named the new and evolved form of his Byakugan. He now also had a much better understanding of his eyes' true capabilities – not only of his Tenseigan's, but also of his Mangekyou Sharingan's. Even while trapped inside the genjutsu world, Boruto was able to make use of his eyes there and explore much of their fundamental properties. In fact, it was inside the genjutsu world that Boruto finally activated his Mangekyou Sharingan while suffering through the excruciating pain of the countless lives that were lost in time. Thus he knew clearly what he needed to do next.

Boruto focused his vision at a singular point in front of him with all his might, which caused space itself to become unstable. At that point he held his right hand in the shape of a blade and slashed across that space, causing it to tear asunder and create a rift between worlds. As he looked through the torn space, Boruto could clearly see Konoha in the distance through it. The other end of the rift had opened up in the sky above the village. Just as he expected, Boruto could now freely travel between the worlds, as facilitated by both of his new eyes. Returning back to the shinobi world would no longer be an issue. But all of this came at a price. A feeling of immense fatigue overcame his entire body and his eyes were bleeding even more profusely. It would appear that creating a link between worlds put a heavy toll upon his body.

Not to mention, Boruto was starting to hear voices in his head, the voices of the people from the past whose lives he witnessed within the genjutsu world. Yet now those voices seemed to be spilling out into the real world. These were the same voices that haunted Madara throughout his life and nearly drove him insane. It was a side effect of his Mangekyou Sharingan and now Boruto was feeling it as well.

The young Uzumaki understood clearly the pain behind those voices. He may not have been able to save them, but at the very least he could right the wrongs of the past such that the future could be at peace. He alone could bring about this change, or so he believed.

"With the power of the Tenseigan and Mangekyou Sharingan combined, I can finally assume my position as the Observer. Under my watch, justice will be delivered unequivocally. None shall escape my gaze!" Boruto declared while looking down upon the entire shinobi world with his transcendent eyes. "I will finally succeed where all the Kages failed. It is time to bring forth a new dawn…The Akatsuki!"

Thus at that very moment began a new era for the entire shinobi world, one that would widely come to be known as "The Akatsuki".

* * *

 **15 years later…**

Many years passed since Boruto's fated meeting with Madara. Much had transpired during that time. The shinobi world was a vastly different place with the Akatsuki at the helm. Yet that was a story for a different time. Right now was the time to introduce a young man whose aspiration was much simpler – to save the one person he cared for most, at any cost.

In the samurai world, within the City of Iron, it was close to midnight, and with it would arrive the 14th birthday of a certain boy with an all too familiar visage – spiky blonde hair with a small strand of silver hair sticking out from the very top of his scalp. The irises of his eyes were a dark black. These particularly distinctive features were an amalgamation of the most visible traits he inherited from his parents.

The young man was finally able to step back home after a long day's training session. Yet the home that he returned to was empty. Even on the day of his birthday, there would be nobody there to greet him. He never had a proper family around him during his upbringing. Such was his life and he came to accept it over time. It was all because of a certain man, the one man he hated most.

The blonde haired boy was wearing a midnight blue men's kimono along with a white hakama, all tied around the waist by a red sash. This was the traditional samurai's training gear, and although he wasn't fond of its appearance to say the least, even he couldn't deny the comfort this outfit provided to move around freely during training.

He placed his sword on one of the special holsters right next to the entrance. This was a common feature seen in all samurai households. Their swords were their lifeblood after all.

Despite there not being anyone home, a female voice spoke directly into his mind in an ever so enthusiastic tone. "WELCOME BACK! It's almost time for your birthday, so I have a special birthday song loaded up just for you! Would you like to hear it? Would you? Please say yes, pleeaaaaaaassssse!"

"It's not my birthday yet. It's still an hour away. Besides, I'm already having a tough time enduring your overenthusiastic voice in my head after the long day I've had. Not sure I'll be able to handle you singing away on top of that. I think I'm good."

"But I worked so hard finding it! Come ooonnn!"

"Okay okay, fine…not now though. Only once when it strikes midnight." The boy breathed a sigh of defeat. "I'm now celebrating my birthday with a household artificial intelligence. What a sad state of affairs."

"Hey, I take offense to that. I'm no ordinary household A.I! I'm a SUPER A.I! Believe it!"

"I get it, no need to shout it in my head. I'm the one who programmed you after all."

"You know, it's still kind of shocking to see you pick up a sword on your own accord and start training. Even the other samurai seemed surprised to see you out of the lab and in the dojo."

For the first time, a look of determination overcame the young boy's face. Him picking up the sword was not in mere jest. There was a very specific reason as to why he did so, one that meant the world to him. "I don't care for fighting. I could care less about learning any combat techniques. But I understand that if I intend to stand up to THAT MAN, if I wish to save that which I hold precious, I NEED to fight. And I will do so with any means necessary, using a sword or otherwise."

Even the A.I could tell the seriousness in his tone. "Does that mean you're finally willing to accept your shinobi lineage?"

The young man closed his eyes in response to that question, thinking hard about who he was and what he wanted to be. Once he finally came to terms with himself, he pulled out a three pronged kunai from his pocket and gazed at it carefully. This kunai was a family heirloom passed on through his father's side, the only item that reminded him of his shinobi lineage. "If it means I can bring an end to that man's reign…to finally put an end to the Akatsuki, I am willing to use even these accursed powers that I inherited from him to do so."

"This is my vow – I, Agito Uzumaki, will defeat my father once and for all so that I may finally free my mother from his malicious grasp!"

* * *

So the cycle begins anew.

Finally, the introduction of the character whose monologues you've been reading at the end of a number of previous chapters - the son of Boruto. What could have happened between father and son? I'll leave that question open to you all. It'll be interesting to see what you all think.

Those monologues from before weren't actually "part" of the story. I wrote them just to introduce his character before he finally made his appearance. He will be bringing a unique dynamic to the story, particularly with his relation to the Uzumaki family - Naruto, Hinata and Himawari. How many of you have read a story of Naruto and Hinata interacting with their grandchild? This should be interesting.

 **MrAwesome8:** I wouldn't say Madara's really evil in this story. He started off with pure intentions, but over time because of his eyes and his failures, he sort of became insane. That's when he eventually ran into Boruto.

 **theeyethatwatchesoverall:** Keep reading. That's an order! Plz...

 **DarkManta:** Thanks. You know me. I love me my plot twists. And I wouldn't worry about Naruto. He's fine. Others though...

That is all for today. Next chapter will be dedicated to our newest addition to the story. I want to introduce him properly. Show who he is and what his intentions are. Until then, take care!


End file.
